SCO Summit 2024: No discussions on India-Pakistan cricket resumption during Jaishankar's Islamabad visit

India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, recently visited Islamabad to attend the 23rd Meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of Government. However, contrary to speculation, no discussions were held regarding the resumption of cricket ties between India and Pakistan during his visit, official sources confirmed.

Jaishankar’s trip marked a diplomatic engagement under the SCO framework, but local Pakistani media reported that cricket was a key conversation starter between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan. Pakistan reportedly proposed that future dialogues between the two nations could begin by discussing cricket as a means of easing tensions.

Sources also disclosed that initial seating arrangements kept the two foreign ministers apart, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs later adjusted this, ensuring they sat side by side during the event.

India last toured Pakistan in 2008 for the Asia Cup, and the last bilateral series between the two took place in India from December 2012 to January 2013. Since then, the arch-rivals have only met in ICC events and Asia Cup tournaments. While Pakistan has travelled to India three times since 2008, cricketing ties remain frozen amid broader geopolitical tensions.

With Pakistan set to host the ICC Champions Trophy next year, uncertainty looms over whether India will participate. The International Cricket Council (ICC) is reportedly considering three options for the tournament’s hosting arrangements. One option is to continue with Pakistan as the sole host, as planned. Another is a hybrid model where India’s matches and knockout stages would be moved to Dubai. A final option is to shift the entire tournament to a neutral venue, with Dubai, Sri Lanka, or South Africa as potential alternatives.

Pakistan has not hosted a major ICC event since the 1996 World Cup, which it co-hosted with India and Sri Lanka. The country was due to co-host the 2011 edition but was stripped of its rights following the 2009 terror attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore