The uncertainty surrounding the Champions Trophy 2025 continues, even as the International Cricket Council (ICC) faces mounting pressure following its failure to meet its contractual obligations, wherein it is required to release the tournament’s schedule and fixtures to all its stakeholders at least 90 days before the event, Cricbuzz reports.
With the deadline having passed, it is the ICC’s media partner Jio Star, the biggest bankrollers of global cricket, that could well demand recompense. The broadcaster would justifiable be able to claim that the delays will adversely impact its ability to fully exploit the tournament commercially.
Meanwhile, the host broadcaster is reported to be strongly opposed (no surprises there) to any proposal to decouple India and Pakistan into separate groups, which would allow Pakistan to play all its league fixtures at home. Having India and Pakistan in the same group would require the hosts to travel to another country for their match against India under the hybrid arrangement, a plan the ICC now looks most likely to adopt during its crucial Friday, November 29, board meeting.
The end game scenario is clearly at hand now with the ICC board expected to overwhelmingly back world cricket’s financial power centre India’s unequivocal demand that the tournament embrace the hybrid model.
An isolated Pakistan will clearly have only two options. Swallow “wounded national pride” and accept the hybrid model with some financial incentives the ICC will likely offer. Or boycott the event altogether and move the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the ICC. Choose the second option and an already financially constrained Pakistan Cricket Board will be likely staring at international isolation in global cricket, whatever be the outcome of its case before the CAS (if it chooses that route).
The bald truth of the matter remains that there is no world cricket without India so the PCB can “like it or lump it”.
