PCB Issues Conditional NOC for Pakistan Champions in World Championship of Legends

PCB Grants NOC for WCL Participation

New Delhi, October 5: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has consented to provide a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the Pakistan Champions team to compete in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) currently taking place in the UAE, albeit with specific conditions attached.

As per sources from the WCL, the PCB requested certain guarantees from the tournament organizers, particularly regarding the absence of Indian players in the competition.

According to WCL sources, “The PCB has agreed to issue an NOC for the Pakistan Champions team to participate in the WCL, but this is contingent on certain stipulations. However, the WCL management did not acquiesce to any of the PCB's requests.”

Additionally, the PCB demanded formal apologies from Indian players for their refusal to play against the Pakistan Champions in the previous year's tournament. The board suggested that a handshake between the players could help mend relations.

Nevertheless, the WCL management did not accept these terms. Sources indicate that while the tournament organizers agreed to the commercial conditions proposed by the PCB, they rejected the requests for written apologies and a handshake.

This situation arises amidst ongoing uncertainty regarding the Pakistan Champions' participation in the forthcoming WCL edition.

In the last WCL, the India Champions opted not to compete against the Pakistan Champions due to geopolitical tensions and public sentiment following the Pahalgam terror attack.

The India Champions forfeited their scheduled semi-final match against the Pakistan Champions in the 2025 WCL, allowing the latter to progress directly to the final.

The Indian team, which included former international stars like Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Yusuf Pathan, and Robin Uthappa, chose not to take the field due to the prevailing tensions between the two nations.

This marked the second instance in the tournament where the India Champions withdrew from a match against the Pakistan Champions. They had previously been scheduled to face off in the group stage, but that match was also canceled after the India Champions declined to participate.