LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Sunday announced the UAE as the neutral venue for India’s matches of the forthcoming ICC Champions Trophy which will be staged in Pakistan.

According to a PCB spokesman, the Board officially informed the International Cricket Council about its decision. He added that deciding the neutral venue for the eight-nation event was Pakistan’s task.

As a result of this decision, the India-Pakistan matches of the Champions Trophy will take place in the UAE.

The PCB spokesman further said that the final decision regarding the neutral venue was made following a meeting between PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi and UAE Minister of Tolerance Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan in Ghotki. The UAE minister also serves as the chairman of the country’s Cricket Board.

During the meeting, topics of mutual interest, bilateral relations, and the promotion of cricket between Pakistan and the UAE were discussed.

An agreement was reached to take further steps for the promotion of cricket between Pakistan and the UAE. The PCB chief invited Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan to visit Pakistan to watch the Champions Trophy matches.

Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan expressed his best wishes for the successful organisation of the Champions Trophy. He emphasised the importance of UAE’s relations with Pakistan, stating, “Our good wishes are with you for the organisation of the Champions Trophy tournament.”

Mohsin on the occasion offered full support for promoting cricket in the UAE.

According to a Press Trust of India report on Sunday, Dubai was locked in as the neutral venue for India’s matches in the Champions Trophy.

On Thursday, the deadlock over the hosting of the eight-team Champions Trophy finally ended when the ICC announced that India will play their matches of the 50-over event at a neutral venue instead of Pakistan which will get a similar arrangement for tournaments to be held in India till 2027 on the two-way hybrid model proposed by the PCB.

The ICC is now expected to announce the final schedule of the event with Pakistan expected to host 9 to 10 matches.

The two-way hybrid arrangement will apply to the Champions Trophy 2025 (Pakistan), next year’s women’s World Cup in India and the T20 World Cup in 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.

Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2024