Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has offered a fierce response to the International Cricket Council (ICC) regarding India’s stance for the 2025 Champions Trophy. It comes after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), on the guidance of the central government, has refused to send the team to Pakistan for playing the showpiece event.
As of now, the tournament is expected to take place across three venues in Pakistan from February 19 to March 9. However, a tussle between BCCI and PCB has put the Champions Trophy in jeopardy. It has been 16 years since India last visited Pakistan for featuring in the Asia Cup.
According to reports, PCB feels they are also important for ICC’s revenue, with India-Pakistan games bringing many sponsors on board.
“If India’s participation contributes to ICC’s revenue, the PCB’s role is equally crucial, and without Pakistan-India matches, the ICC revenues would suffer significantly,” sources told Geo News.
BCCI has reportedly asked ICC to conduct the Champions Trophy in a hybrid model, where the Indian team will play their games at a different venue, preferably Dubai. However, PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi lambasted the reports and wants the tournament to be played fully in Pakistan.
As a result, South Africa and UAE were looked upon as the potential venues, in case Pakistan is not considered a host or pulls out of the tournament.
How much money will PCB lose if Champions Trophy is moved or postponed?
PCB could suffer a huge monetary loss if the 2025 Champions Trophy is moved to another venue or is indefinitely postponed. According to Pakistan’s stance, they may pull out of the tournament if they are not given the hosting rights for the marquee event.
There can be serious implications on Pakistan if they don’t adhere to the tournament guidelines. They could face ICC’s sanctions, and a cut in funding from the apex board. Moreover, they would lose around the hosting fees of USD 65 million, which is why they are hell bent on organizing all games in the country.
In the past few years, Pakistan have made significant investments in improving the infrastructure of venues like Karachi, Rawalpindi, and Lahore for the Champions Trophy.
PCB has been firm at the moment, as they allowed the Asia Cup 2023 to be played at a hybrid model and also sent their team to India for the 2023 World Cup. Moreover, according to the board, they were awarded the hosting rights of the tournament in 2021, and there had been no questions raised since then, and are also confident of hosting the event successfully.
