After a horror week of disappointments and controversies, Pakistan cricket has finally received some good news. The Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) draft schedule for the Champions Trophy 2025 has been approved by the ICC. The PCB sent the proposed schedule for the ICC event, which will be held from February 19 to March 9, about two weeks ago and was expecting an answer.
Champions Trophy 2025 good to go, says ICC
According to GeoNews, the ICC has made no changes to the schedule and will share it with the other seven boards later in the month. In what is the first ICC event to be played in Pakistan since the ODI World Cup 1996, the big teams—Australia, England, India, South Africa, Bangladesh, New Zealand, and Afghanistan—are supposed to travel to the nation.
As per the proposed schedule, Team India is to play all of their matches at the Gaddafi Stadium. This means the blockbuster India vs Pakistan match will take place in Lahore, and so will the final, which will be played on March 9. The two other venues are the National Stadium (Karachi) and the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium (Rawalpindi).
BCCI to decide future
Although the ICC has cleared the schedule, the BCCI will most likely refuse to accept the proposal for the Champions Trophy 2025. Last year, Pakistan was announced as the host for the ODI Asia Cup, but India refused to play their matches in Pakistan, and the majority of the event had to be shifted to Sri Lanka.
Something similar can be expected this time around as well. As the biggest powerhouse in cricket, BCCI will likely flex its muscles and ensure that they don’t play a match in Pakistan. Speculations are also emerging that India will play their matches in the UAE while the other sides will play in Pakistan.
