ICC is in the middle of the PCB and BCCI battle

By Chander Shekhar Luthra.

New Delhi : The Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are at odds over the 2025 Champions Trophy.

On the one hand, BCCI is spreading news that the neighboring country is willing to adjust the schedule with a hybrid model to allow India to participate by holding some of the games in Dubai or Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). PCB sources have refuted these rumors and reaffirmed that “all the matches will be played within Pakistan”.

This situation has arisen due to the Indian government’s failure to make a final decision regarding Team India’s travel to Pakistan. Meanwhile, it’s also important to mention here that the International Cricket Council (ICC) cannot force any cricket board to go against government policy, as the BCCI has yet to make an official announcement regarding its participation.

The PCB’s latest stance was prompted by media reports in India suggesting that the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 would adopt a hybrid format to enable India’s participation in the competition. This is due to the low likelihood of India visiting Pakistan given the current political climate.

According to the reports, the UAE was proposed as a backup venue for hosting India’s matches and serving as a tournament hybrid model. The UAE’s top-notch cricket venues in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah are capable of hosting matches of this size and have prior experience doing so.

PCB has pointed towards Pakistan’s most recent tactic against India during the 2023 ODI World Cup, putting the onus on the Indian government to now reciprocate in a similar manner.

Last year, the PCB had to approve the hybrid model for the 2023 Asia Cup due to India’s refusal to visit Pakistan. In order to match international standards, the PCB is currently upgrading the Champions Trophy venues.

The head of the PCB at the time was Najam Sethi. The competition selected Sri Lanka as a backup location. The island nation hosted all of India’s games, including the final, which India ultimately won.

ICC visit to Pak

Meanwhile, from November 10-12, an ICC group will visit Lahore to assess the tournament preparations. The group will scrutinise the renovations underway at the stadiums hosting the competition.

A ceremony on November 11 will officially announce the dates and key information for the Champions Trophy 2025. The reports claim that the member countries have already received the schedule, which will take place from February 19 to March 9. For security reasons, it is expected that Lahore would host the majority of matches, including those involving India and the championship game.

The first game and one semifinal will take place at Karachi’s National Stadium.

Group A includes India, Bangladesh, New Zealand, and the host nation, Pakistan. While Afghanistan, South Africa, Australia, and England make up Group B.

The PCB is investing nearly 13 billion Pakistani rupees to upgrade the stadiums in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, which will host the CT matches.

About the Writer: Chander Shekhar Luthra is a senior sports journalist based in Delhi with a unique background as a former cricketer turned journalist. As an ex-Ranji player, he brings over 27 years of expertise covering a wide array of sports events. His work includes in-depth coverage and analysis of ICC Cricket World Cups, the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympic Games, and the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. He can be reached at shekhar.luthra@gmail.com.

Twitter: @shekharluthra