The Indian cricket team is unlikely to visit Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy scheduled to be held in February and March.
According to media reports, a BCCI source informed ANI that the cricket board is planning to request the International Cricket Council (ICC) to arrange the matches in Dubai or Sri Lanka.
“India will not travel to Pakistan for Champions Trophy 2025. We will tell ICC to arrange their matches in Dubai or Sri Lanka,” a BCCI source said.
Last year, the Asia Cup was hosted by Pakistan, but India, the eventual winners, played all their matches in Sri Lanka under a “hybrid model”.
On 6 May, BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla stated that the Indian team would travel to Pakistan for the said tournament only if the central government allowed it.
“For the Champions Trophy, we will do whatever the Indian government tells us. So we will go according to the Indian government’s decision,” Shukla said.
India have not traveled to Pakistan since 2008 and the arch-rivals now only meet in multi-team events.
The upcoming Champions Trophy marks Pakistan’s first major cricket event since it co-hosted the World Cup in 1996 with India and Sri Lanka.
The proposed tournament schedule places Pakistan in Group A alongside India, Bangladesh and New Zealand, while Group B includes England, South Africa, Australia and Afghanistan.
The tournament is scheduled for the period from February 19 to March 9 with a reserve day on March 10. Karachi National Stadium will host the opening match and one semi-final out of a total of three matches and Rawalpindi will host five matches including the second semi-final.
