KARACHI ¨C Pakistan¡¯s decision to boycott its Twenty20 World Cup match against India has drawn widespread support from fans and administrators who hailed the move as a long-overdue stand in a rivalry in which sport and geopolitics have collided.
The government on Sunday cleared Pakistan to take part in the tournament beginning Saturday but barred the ?team from playing India in a Feb. 15 group match in Colombo, a decision the International Cricket Council (ICC) said ?was not ?in the interests of the global game.
The boycott deepened a long freeze in bilateral cricket between ?the nuclear-armed neighbors ¡ª who have not played a full series since 2012-13 and now meet largely at neutral venues ¡ª and dealt a blow to the ICC¡¯s marquee event, with India-Pakistan matches the biggest drivers of global viewership and revenue.
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