The International Cricket Council (ICC) finds itself in a precarious situation over next year’s Champions Trophy. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has already shut down the idea of sending the Indian men’s cricket team to Pakistan for the event, leaving the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) fuming. PCB, who have the legal hosting rights for the event, isn’t willing to settle for a hybrid system once again, having done so on multiple occasions before. The situation, hence, puts the onus on ICC to come up with a solution.
While neither the PCB nor the BCCI are willing to hedge from their current stance, the responsibility of resolving the matter falls on the shoulders of ICC, who only have three options with them. They are:
1. Convince the PCB to agree on BCCI’s hybrid model proposal, which would see five of the 15 games of the tournament being played in UAE.
2. Move out the Champions Trophy from Pakistan entirely, but the decision could see the PCB deciding to withdraw its team’s participation from the tournament altogether.
3. Postpone the Champions Trophy indefinitely. This decision can have huge ramifications on the revenues of both the ICC and the PCB, who are all slated to earn big bucks from the tournament. The PCB has also been renovating its venues ahead of the tournament, incurring a significant cost.
Pakistan have hosted some of the top sides in the world on numerous occasions. So far, New Zealand have toured Pakistan thrice, England twice, and Australia once.
The PCB has also sought an explanation from the ICC over BCCI’s reluctance to send the Indian team to Pakistan, asking for the ‘real reason’ behind the decision.
“The PCB has responded to last week’s ICC letter seeking clarifications for the BCCI’s decision not to travel to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025,” PCB spokesperson Sami-Ul-Hasan told Cricbuzz on Tuesday.
It has also been learned that the PCB has been informed by Pakistan’s government that the hybrid model is “off the table”.
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