Just before the announcement of the schedule for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, expected to run between the third week of February and the second week of March, Pakistan suffered a huge blow with a fire incident in the team hotel of Karachi on November 18 (Monday) which forced the board to curtail the National Women’s Championship.
Five of their players had a close shave after the incident, as no player was injured during the entire incident. This could be another aspect to keep an eye on before the ICC is reportedly declaring the dates and venues of the event.
“Fortunately, no players were injured, as the PCB promptly evacuated the five players in the hotel at the time of the incident and relocated them safely to the Hanif Mohammad High-Performance Centre.” The statement of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was addressed in the interaction.
Pakistan to announce date of final of National Women’s Championship
They also tried to find an alternate accommodation for the teams, but because of the Ideas Defense Exhibition being held in Karachi, they failed to find the hotel. The board also expressed that the decision to cut short the event has come on the back of them, keeping in mind the health and safety of the players.
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“Additionally, the unavailability of alternative accommodations to meet the approximately 100 rooms of the required standards contributed to this outcome.” The Pakistan board shed light.
Recently, the biggest decision around the two boards has been regarding the participation of India in the ICC event through, making a trip to India. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has written a letter to the International Cricket Council (ICC), which has been forwarded to the PCB, where they have refused to travel because of security reasons.
The PCB replied to know the detailed information on the security issues. The BCCI has planned to activate the hybrid model, which will help them to play their games either in Sri Lanka or Dubai. But the chairman of PCB, Mohsin Naqvi, is not ready to accept the model as he felt that the Indian board should show some gesture towards them because of them going to India for the ODI World Cup 2023, despite the former not coming to their country for the Asia Cup 2023.
The Pakistani board is now planning to arrange the rest of the tournament on a different date, which is expected to be announced in due course.
“To determine the tournament winner, the PCB has decided that the Invincibles and the Stars – the top two teams after four matches each – will face off in the final. The date and venue for the final will be announced in due course.” The statement has been addressed.
The Pakistani board has renovated the three venues, Rawalpindi Stadium, the Gaddafi Stadium of Lahore, and the National Stadium of Karachi, for the upcoming tournament. The final decision for the venues and dates is not the ICC to decide if they want to make a smooth process of the event.