The trophy tour for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy remains mired in controversy just like the uncertainty surrounding venues of the marquee ODI event. It became known on Friday that the trophy tour venues announcement by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) — which included three (Skardu, Hunza and Muzaffarabad) locations in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir — was without International Cricket Council approval. As a result, for now, the tour remains a non-starter.
“Get ready, Pakistan! The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 trophy tour kicks off in Islamabad on 16 November, also visiting scenic travel destinations like Skardu, Murree, Hunza and Muzaffarabad. Catch a glimpse of the trophy which Sarfaraz Ahmed lifted in 2017 at The Oval, from 16-24 November,” the PCB posted on X on Thursday.
This move didn’t go down well with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and objections have been raised through official channels with the ICC. The BCCI feels the PCB is playing a political game. PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi is also the Interior minister in the Pakistan government.
“BCCI secretary Jay Shah has strongly condemned PCB’s actions. The ICC has taken note of India’s complaint,” an official familiar with developments said.
The trophy tour ahead of an ICC event is an exercise undertaken by the host nation in consultation with the governing body to create some buzz for the event. Ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, the trophy went into the stratosphere, 1,20,000 feet above the Earth, before landing in Ahmedabad, the venue of the final. The announcement for this marketing exercise was made through official ICC channels.
In the current scenario, Indian cricket board officials say, the PCB bypassed protocols knowing that they would not have got the go-ahead from the ICC.
With less than 100 days left before the start of the event, the tournament itself remains shrouded in controversy, with no clarity on where the event will take place. The BCCI has made it known to the ICC that Indian players would not be able to travel to Pakistan for security reasons and that their matches and the final of the tournament (in the event that India makes it to the summit clash) should be relocated to a neutral venue.
“Our stand on the Champions trophy is clear, we do what our government tells us to do. We have already made this known to the ICC,” BCCI vice president Rajiv Shukla told ANI on Friday.
The BCCI is batting for the tournament to be staged in a hybrid model, with UAE favourites to stage one half of the 15 matches. This approach is on similar lines to last year’s Asia Cup where India’s matches, originally to be played in Pakistan, were relocated to Sri Lanka. The PCB has proposed Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi as tournament venues with India and Pakistan grouped together along with New Zealand and Bangladesh in the eight-nation event slated for February-March 2025.
The PCB wants all matches to stay in Pakistan and has written to the ICC that the BCCI be asked to convey in writing what their objections are. ICC sources maintain ‘they continue to engage with the host and participating nations’.
