The Indian blind cricket team won't be taking part in the T20 World Cup in Pakistan after the Ministry of External Affairs denied them permission to travel. The Sports Ministry had granted initial nod, but just days before the tournament begins, the MEA verbally rejected it, and that has resulted in the team's withdrawal. Tournament Without Key Teams Shailendra Yadav, General Secretary of the Indian Blind Cricket Association, confirmed the decision taken after conversations with the MEA. The team was waiting for final clearance for nearly a month. Sadly, India is not the only team to skip this event. England, Australia, and New Zealand too have opted out, giving Pakistan fewer competitors and an easier way ahead. With India Today, Yadav shared: “We were waiting for the last 25 days to get permission from the government to go to Pakistan. Now we can’t wait any longer as the tournament is about to begin. When I talked with the Ministry of External affairs (MEA) on the phone then they told us that we won't be getting any permission to go to Pakistan and we can cancel your tournament. They also told us that we will be getting an official letter of denial as well. However, we haven’t got any official letter yet but on the basis of our conversation with MEA we’ve decided not to go to Pakistan and we will not participate in the Blind T20 World Cup.” - India refuses to send the Kabaddi Team to Pakistan.- India not going to Pakistan for blind T20 World as Ministry Affairs hasn't given permission.- India refused to go to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy 2025, India want Hybrid Model for CT. pic.twitter.com/JzTAoplcPh — Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) November 19, 2024 Also Read | Hardik Pandya to Play SMAT 2024 Under Krunal’s Captaincy The defending champion is India, but they are missing, which has disappointed all players and supporters - the team has managed to win each T20 World Cup for the blind ever since its launch in 2012. They went on to win the titles in both 2017 and last year 2022. Last year, they won against Bangladesh by 120 runs in the final, held in Bengaluru. The decision comes in just after the BCCI communicated with the ICC stating that India will not be traveling to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy. The Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) confirmed that the tournament will still go ahead while India's decision has left a huge void in this competition.