The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has requested the International Cricket Council (ICC) to finalize the hosting rights agreements for the Champions Trophy 2025. The PCB emphasized that if India refuses to travel to Pakistan due to political and security reasons, they should be compensated. A reliable source within the PCB revealed that although the ICC has designated Pakistan as the host of the tournament, the official hosting agreement is yet to be signed.
PCB Chairman Zaka Ashraf and COO Salman Naseer recently met with the ICC executive board in Ahmedabad to discuss the hosting of the Champions Trophy in Pakistan. During the meeting, Pakistani officials expressed concerns about the possibility of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) declining to send their team to Pakistan. They emphasized that the ICC should avoid making unilateral decisions regarding the tournament.
The PCB officials proposed that if India refuses to play in Pakistan due to security concerns, an independent security agency should be appointed by the ICC. This agency would work in collaboration with the Pakistani government and security officials to assess the security situation for all participating teams, including India.
The officials highlighted that several top teams had successfully toured Pakistan in the past two years without any security issues. They also made it clear that if India’s matches were to be moved to another country, the ICC should compensate Pakistan for this decision.
Given the strained relations between the governments of Pakistan and India, the PCB officials expressed concerns about India potentially backing out of playing in Pakistan on security and political grounds. It should be noted that India had previously refused to play in Pakistan during the Asia Cup, which was partially hosted by Pakistan in August-September this year. Instead, the Indian team played all their matches in Sri Lanka, including the final.
The PCB officials reiterated their stance at the ICC meeting, stating that Pakistan would not relinquish its hosting rights. The BCCI representative clarified that the decision on India playing in Pakistan in 2025 would be determined by the Indian government, and they would abide by its decision.
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