The International Cricket Council is reportedly planning to propose a hybrid model for the 2025 Champions Trophy that is scheduled to take place in Pakistan. This decision is taken as India refuses to travel to Pakistan for the eight-team tournament that has been scheduled for February-March 2025. A report published by Cricbuzz on November 27 suggests that the ICC has planned a board meeting for November 29 to address the changes to be made regarding the change in the venue for this tournament.
BCCI’s Stance And PCB’s Reply
Although the BCCI has not made an official public statement, it is confirmed that the board communicated its decision not to travel to Pakistan to both the PCB and the ICC. On the other hand, the PCB has rejected the idea of a hybrid model at all times, stating that all the matches must be held within Pakistan. Despite this, the ICC is looking at a new proposal that will have 10 matches played in Pakistan, which will include the group stages, while five games may be played in another country, which includes one semi-final and the final.
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Potential Venue For India’s Matches
The hybrid model is likely to come into existence; however, the ICC hasn’t made a final decision about playing India’s matches at the neutral venue. Dubai is a potential venue which might be discussed with the intention of hosting Indian team’s matches, though there’s the possibility that South Africa may become an alternate host for some of these games. Yet, that would be determined later.
According to the Cricbuzz report, “As a potential compromise, the ICC may strive to minimise the impact of the hybrid model and may agree to host both semifinals and the final in Pakistan itself in the unlikely scenario of India failing to qualify for the last four or last two stages. While such an arrangement would pose serious operational and logistical challenges, this concession might be offered to the PCB given the extraordinary circumstances. The venues will be kept ready in advance with all required hotel and travel bookings.”
Big Setback For PCB
While the PCB would most likely not embrace the hybrid model at face value, the majority support for it from the ICC board means that the Pakistan board has little choice but to succumb to the pressure. In case the PCB does reject the proposal, the possibility exists that the ICC may even consider relocating the whole tournament to another country altogether, which would only add to the woes of Pakistan.
Discussions continue, with uncertainty looming large on the 2025 Champions Trophy future. A balancing act seems inevitable as ICC and PCB struggle to adjust with all the stakeholder’s views.
Growing Political Unrest In Islamabad
The protests, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, started on Sunday as a march towards central Islamabad. Violent clashes have been reported between protesters and security forces. Recently Sri Lanka A cancelled their tour to Pakistan to ensure safe and secure conditions for both Sri Lankan players and staff amid the intense politico-military turmoil taking place in the region. The development comes as a significant blow to Pakistan, just months ahead of the highly anticipated ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which is set to take place in the country.
