One of the burning questions in the cricket world is whether India travel to Pakistan for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 or not. And finally, the BCCI has informed the ICC of its decision and the chances of Pakistani fans seeing Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma playing in their stadiums are nil.
Pakistan was given the hosting rights for the ICC Champions Trophy, which is being revived after 7 years. The Men in Green are the defending champions as well, as they defeated India in the final of the last tournament which was held in England in 2017.
This will be the first big ICC event Pakistan has hosted since the 1996 World Cup. However, the question remained whether India would come to Pakistan given their troubled political and geographic relations. India has not visited Pakistan since the 2008 Asia Cup.
A bilateral series from December 2012 to January 2013 in India also marked the final bilateral series between the two nations. Since then, both nations have only clashed at ICC tournaments and the Asia Cup. India also didn’t travel for the 2023 Asia Cup, playing its matches in Sri Lanka, while Pakistan was the official host.
The ICC Champions Trophy is scheduled from February to March 2025 in Pakistan.
BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla said in May that the Indian team would be sent to Pakistan for the tournament only if the central government permits it.
“In the case of the Champion Trophy, we will do whatever the Government of India will tell us to do. We send our team only when the Government of India permits us. So we will go according to the decision of the Indian government,” Shukla had said.
Meanwhile, a few days back, the Pakistan Cricket Board had proposed to India to play all its matches in one city, Lahore, and even the draft schedule that PCB submitted to ICC sees India playing all its matches in Lahore, with their clash against Pakistan scheduled for March 1.
BCCI informs ICC that India will not travel to Pakistan for Champions Trophy 2025; and asks its matches to be hosted in Dubai or Sri Lanka
The Indian team will not travel to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and will ask the International Cricket Council to hold its matches in Sri Lanka or Dubai, a BCCI source told ANI.
“India will not travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy 2025. Will tell ICC to hold its matches in Dubai or Sri Lanka,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying by ANI.
The Champions Trophy will be the second international competition to be held outside of Pakistan in the past two years due to India’s refusal to travel there if Sri Lanka or the United Arab Emirates wins it. All of India’s matches for the Asia Cup 2023 were held in Sri Lanka, while all other matches were also held there in a hybrid format.
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