The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has reportedly chosen the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the neutral location for India’s matches in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
As tournament hosts, the Pakistan Cricket Board has officially communicated this decision to the International Cricket Council (ICC).
A standoff emerged when India refused to visit Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 scheduled for February-March. The PCB and India’s Board of Control for Cricket agreed on a ‘hybrid model.’ According to the methodology, India-Pakistan matches at ICC competitions over the next three years will be held on neutral grounds.
On December 19, the International Cricket Council designated neutral locations for India-Pakistan matches in world championships between 2024 and 2027.
“The ICC Board has approved that matches between India and Pakistan played at ICC Events during the current rights cycle from 2024 to 2027 (which are to be hosted in India or Pakistan) will be played at a neutral venue proposed by the tournament host.
This will apply to the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 (Pakistan), ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 (India), and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 (India and Sri Lanka),” the ICC released a statement and said.
The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 2025 will be hosted by Pakistan from February 19 to March 9 and will feature 7 other teams as well.
Dubai will host all the India CT 2025 matches: Pakistan informs ICC
As per a Cricbuzz report, following a meeting between Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) chairman Sheikh Mubarak Al Nahyan and PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi in Sanghar, Sindh province, Pakistan, the UAE was chosen as the neutral location for India’s Champions Trophy matches in 2025.
“The PCB has chosen the UAE as the neutral venue and the PCB has formally informed the ICC about the decision. Now, India and Pakistan’s Champions Trophy matches will be held in the UAE. The final decision was made after a meeting between Mohsin Naqvi and Sheikh Al Nahyan,” a PCB spokesman was quoted as telling Cricbuzz.
Dubai is the favored venue for the highly anticipated Champions Trophy match between India and Pakistan, which is expected to take place on February 23. The UAE offers three international venues: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah.
However, Dubai is preferred owing to its higher seating capacity and better infrastructure.
ICC Set to Announce ICC Champions Trophy 2025 Schedule Soon
The ICC is anticipated to unveil the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 schedule shortly. The ICC is poised to reveal the itinerary for CT 2025, an eight-team competition held from February 19 to March 9. According to reports, if India does not qualify, the final could be hosted in Lahore. Pakistan are the defending champions, defeating India in the 2017 final.
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