Uswah Zahid, Jadetimes Staff
U. Zahid is a Jadetimes contributor covering Politics and Sports.
The Pakistan-India Champions Trophy saga is intensifying after the Indian cricket team refused to visit Pakistan for the mega event, citing security reasons, leaving the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) scratching its head to find solutions.
Pakistan is scheduled to host the International Cricket Council's (ICC) event next February and March, with major teams like Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa participating.
However, the ICC informed the PCB that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) formally notified them of the Indian government's decision to not allow them to travel to Pakistan for the upcoming event.
The Indian team's refusal to cross the border has dented the hopes of the PCB, which, for the past few months, has been working on the event preparations.
Last year, the PCB had suggested a hybrid model when the BCCI refused to send its team to Pakistan for the Asia Cup. The model suggested hosting four matches of the tournament in Pakistan and the remaining matches at a neutral venue.
However, this time, Pakistan's cricket body has decided to not accept any "hybrid model" provisioning any of its Champions Trophy matches outside Pakistan.
Pakistan is determined to hold the entire Champions Trophy in the country and had also suggested staging all matches of the Indian team in Punjab's Lahore, which is near the Wagah border, so the guests could travel back to their country after every match. But the idea was shot down by the BCCI.
As per reports, the Pakistani government has decided to adopt a firm stance by boycotting all matches against India unless the BCCI sends the Indian team to play on its soil. If Pakistan considers this option, the ICC would suffer greatly in terms of revenue as it earns relies heavily on events featuring both teams.
It must be noted that the Indian team has not played an international match in Pakistan since 2008. However, the Men in Green visited India for the ODI World Cup 2023.
Recently, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's visited Pakistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting in October, wherein Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar reportedly discussed the Indian team's possibility to visit Pakistan.
This was the first direct conversation since 2015 between both countries, raising hopes for normalcy in sports. However, the thaw in relations between the nations remains.
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