New Delhi. ICC Champions Trophy is being organized in Pakistan. However, this tournament is being organized under the hybrid model in which apart from Pakistan, there will also be a neutral venue where the Indian team will play all its league matches. Team India has refused to go to Pakistan, after which now the secret has also been revealed as to which neutral venue the Indian team will play the Champions Trophy matches. India will play its group stage matches of the Champions Trophy in Dubai. And if the Rohit Sharma-led team reaches the knockout stage, then its semi-finals and final will also be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
A reliable source in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed that Dubai was chosen as the neutral venue after a meeting between PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi and his UAE counterpart Sheikh Nahyan Al Mubarak on Saturday night. Sheikh Nahyan is currently holidaying in Ghotki area of Sindh. Naqvi is also the Home Minister of Pakistan. He met Sheikh Nahyan and finalized the administrative matters of the tournament to be hosted by Pakistan.
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The impasse over hosting the Champions Trophy was finally ended on Thursday when the ICC (International Cricket Council) announced that India will play its matches in the 50-over tournament at a neutral venue instead of host nation Pakistan. The same system will be applicable for Pakistan till 2027 and it will play the tournaments held in India at neutral venues. It is expected that ICC will now announce the final schedule of the event, in which nine to 10 matches can be organized in Pakistan.
India refuses to travel to Pakistan due to security concerns
The source said, if India does not qualify for the finals then the title match will be held in Lahore. The arrangement of the hybrid model will be implemented in the Champions Trophy 2025 (Pakistan), the Women’s Cricket World Cup to be held in India next year and the T20 World Cup to be held in India and Sri Lanka in 2026. India had refused to travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy to be held in February-March due to security concerns. Indian players have not played any match in Pakistan since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks in which many people were killed. The last bilateral tournament between the two countries took place in 2012.
BCCI’s stand has always been clear
Traveling to Pakistan also requires the approval of the Indian government, which is firm on its decision. BCCI’s stand has always been clear but the matter dragged on due to PCB’s refusal to allow ‘unilateral’ arrangement of neutral venues. The PCB, under the leadership of Pakistan Home Minister Mohsin Naqvi, did not want to lose its prestige in front of the local public. PCB had sent its team to India for the ODI World Cup last year. He had clearly opposed the ‘hybrid model’ but eventually agreed to it on mutual grounds.
Tags: Champions Trophy, India Vs Pakistan
FIRST PUBLISHED : December 22, 2024, 9:04 PM IST