The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is set to be played in Pakistan, but the huge question mark remains, whether the Indian team will visit the neighbors for the ICC event. India has not traveled to Pakistan since 2008, while Pakistan has come to India for ICC events.
Newly-elected PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi has stated that he wants to speak with his BCCI counterpart Jay Shah as well as ICC bigwigs on the sidelines, seeking some kind of assurance for the Champions Trophy in the ICC meeting in Dubai.
The Champions Trophy will be held in February-March 2025, and as of now, chances seem like the tournament will be held in a ‘hybrid’ model.
However, an ICC Board member, feels that any decision by BCCI, will only be taken closer to the tournament and once again, the idea of using UAE as a potential venue cannot be entirely discarded.
“Every member can raise concerns for discussion at Board meetings and then it would go to a vote. But if the government (of a member nation) expressly says that they can’t play there, ICC would need to look for an alternative. because ICC Board’s position remains that it doesn’t expect its members to go against any policy/instructions issued by its own government,” the ICC member told PTI.
Teams from England, Australia, and New Zealand have all traveled to Pakistan in the recent past and the BCCI will also be under pressure to visit the strife-torn country for the multi-nation engagement. The member also said that India is unlikely to face any votes due to government directives.
“Don’t forget threat perception for an Indian cricket team would always be higher compared to Australia, England, and New Zealand,” said a former BCCI office-bearer.
Meanwhile, early this year, the Indian Davis Cup tennis team traveled to Islamabad, but the perception is that Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah like players traveling to Pakistan is a different thing altogether.
“The BCCI would obviously be compelled to look at it from the point of view that the Pakistan government allowed its team to play in the World Cup in India last year. So, this being a global event and not a continental one like the Asia Cup, the Indian government might take a softer stance. BCCI president Roger Binny and VP Rajiv Shukla had traveled to Pakistan during the Asia Cup,” hoped the ICC board member.
The ICC Champions Trophy was last played in 2017 in England with Pakistan winning the tournament. India didn’t travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup in 2023 owing to security concerns with Pakistan hosting 4 games and the rest of the matches including that of India were played in Sri Lanka.
With February and March being two ideal months to play cricket in the UAE and three international stadiums ready for use, it could well be the second country in a ‘Hybrid Model’ in case India doesn’t want to travel to Pakistan.
The eight teams are expected to be divided into two groups and India’s group matches could well be held in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah.
(PTI inputs)
