LAHORE: While the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has formally submitted its proposals to the International Cricket Council (ICC) to resolve the ongoing dispute with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) regarding next year’s ICC Champions Trophy, the latter is yet to finalise its stance on the matter.

The contention stems from India’s refusal to send its national team to Pakistan for the tournament, citing unsp­ec­ified reasons. However, Sources informed Dawn on Monday that while the PCB has expressed its willingness to accept the hybrid model — a significant shift from its earlier stance of rejecting it outright — the BCCI remains in deliberations over how best to move forward with its proposals to the ICC.

The ICC, meanwhile, has not yet announced a date for its Executive Board meeting to resolve the issue. The delay has left the future of the Champions Trophy hanging in the balance.

The ICC had initially attempted to convene a meeting last Friday, but after a brief 15-minute session, the meeting was postponed to Saturday. However, it was further delayed, with the governing body citing UAE national holidays as the reason. The meeting is now expected to be scheduled after Tuesday.

ICC Champions Trophy’s fate to be decided this week

Despite both cricket boards tentatively agreeing to the hybrid model — under which Pakistan and India will not host each other’s teams for ICC events, and matches will be played at neutral venues — several hurdles remain. One key issue is the BCCI’s reluctance to shift the final of the ICC tournament’s it hosts in the future to a neutral venue, particularly when Pakistan qualifies.

Pakistan, however, has expressed readiness to accept a neutral venue for the final should India qualify for the 2025 tournament. A potential point of contention will be whether the newly-elected ICC president, Jay Shah, an Indian national and the son of the country’s home minister Amit Shah — a key member of the Hindu-nationalist political party BJP — will attend the event if Pakistan qualifies for the final and India does not.

Shah notably refrained from visiting co-host country Pakistan during the 2023 Asia Cup, despite his role as president of the Asian Cricket Council, citing political tensions between the two countries.

Sources within the BCCI suggest that internal discussions on these matters remain ongoing. Given Shah’s political affiliation with the ruling BJP, which has a tough stance on Pakistan, there is concern over whether he would visit Pakistan to present the trophy in the event of a Pakistan win.

The PCB, in its proposals, has stressed the importance of equality under the hybrid model, ensuring that Pakistan’s team will not be required to travel to India for any ICC event.

This marks a reversal from the PCB’s earlier position, when it insisted that all Champions Trophy matches be held in Pakistan.

As the clock ticks down, a final decision is expected by the end of the week, with time running short for the necessary arrangements to be made. Broadcast schedules and other logistical aspects depend on a timely decision, as the event is slated to begin on February 19. The ICC had initially planned to announce the tournament schedule by November 20, but that deadline has now passed without any official confirmation.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2024