Pakistan’s new white-ball captain Mohammad Rizwan has said that the Indian cricket team will receive a warm welcome when it visits Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Speaking at a press conference, Rizwan emphasized that if the Indian team decides to participate, a warm welcome awaits them. Participate in tournaments in Pakistan.
“The fans here love Indian cricketers and will be excited to see the Indian team playing in Pakistan. When they come, we will give them a warm welcome,” Rizwan asserted. . Notably, the last time India visited Pakistan was in the 2008 Asian Cup, where they reached the final but lost to Sri Lanka by 100 points. Since then, political tensions and security concerns have largely limited bilateral cricket relations to neutral venues. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s recent visit to India was for the 2023 ODI World Cup. Before that, the Men in Green visited India in 2012 for a bilateral ODI series.
In the most recent encounter at the 2024 T20 World Cup in America, India defeated Pakistan by six runs, and the intensity and excitement underlined the enduring appeal of the rivalry.
As India Today reported earlier, International Cricket Council (ICC) is exploring Due to lingering uncertainty regarding India’s participation in Pakistan, there are three possible models for hosting the Champions Trophy:
Full tournament in Pakistan: Under this model, all matches, including the semi-finals and final, would be held in Pakistan as originally planned.
Hybrid model (Pakistan and secondary venues): The plan is for India’s matches, semi-finals and final to be held at a neutral venue, most likely Dubai. This approach is reminiscent of the recent 2023 Asian Cup, which adopted a hybrid format to address India’s security concerns in Pakistan.
Complete relocation outside Pakistan: If a complete relocation becomes necessary, Dubai, South Africa and Sri Lanka are considered the frontrunners to host the tournament, with the PCB retaining official hosting rights regardless of location.
The PCB has already drawn up a provisional schedule for the Champions Trophy, which is scheduled to begin on February 19 and culminate with the final on March 9. Proposed host cities include Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi, each of which is of historical importance and equipped to host an international competition. cricket event. The ICC is expected to announce its decision by November, with further insight likely to come when Jay Shah takes over as ICC president on December 1.
