NEW DELHI, Nov 30: After insisting that it will never agree to hold any of the Champions Trophy matches outside Pakistan, the Pakistan Cricket Control Board in a climb down has expressed readiness to hold the Champions Trophy in a hybrid model if the International Cricket Council (ICC) allowed the same arrangement for events to be held in India till 2031.
A top PCB source said the Board was also demanding a greater share in the annual revenue cycle for agreeing to the model under which India would be playing its share of matches, including the clash against Pakistan in Dubai, owing to security concerns. The Champions Trophy is to be held in February-March.
The PCB had earlier threatened to boycott the tournament if its hosting rights were not granted in full and India’s demand for a neutral venue was accepted. “The current situation is that PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has said it will only accept hosting the Champions Trophy on a hybrid model if the board agrees that in future all ICC events will be on same system with Pakistan not going to India to play matches,” the PCB sources said.
Till 2031, India are due to host three ICC men’s events — the 2026 T20 World Cup jointly with Sri Lanka, the 2029 Champions Trophy and the 2031 ODI World Cup jointly with Bangladesh.
Given that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are co-hosts for two major events, Pakistan would not be compelled to travel to India if they insist against it. The point of contention could be just the 2029 Champions Trophy, which will be held entirely in India. Another flash-point could be next year’s women’s ODI World Cup in October, also to be held in India.
The state of flux surrounding next year’s Champions Trophy is now expected to be resolved in the next couple of days after the ICC executive board considers Pakistan’s latest demands. The ICC Board met briefly to find a solution on Friday but no agreement could be reached. The world body eventually told PCB to either accept the hybrid model or be prepared to be excluded from the tournament after Naqvi reiterated the unyielding position of his country.
Local media reports claimed that the PCB has put forward three conditions in this scenario. While nothing official has been announced by either ICC or PCB, the report claimed that India will be playing their games in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The matches involving the Indian cricket team will take place in Dubai. This includes group stage matches as well as semi-final and final (if they qualify). If India fail to progress beyond the group stages of the competition, Pakistan will be hosting the semi-final and final in Lahore. If India hosts any future ICC events, Pakistan will be playing their matches in neutral venues.
The impasse has led to a delay in the announcement of the schedule for the tournament. The PCB source claimed that Naqvi is sticking to his stance despite pressure and has even sought financial perks for the PCB to accept the hybrid model.
“Pakistan also wants the ICC board to increase its financial cycle share of revenues from 5.75 percent and Naqvi is insistent on this but he has not sought any additional hosting fees,” the source added. “People are saying that Naqvi has sought time to get back after talking to his government but we don’t know if he went there with the backing of the government and had already sought their approval to make his stand in the ICC board’s virtual meeting,” he asserted.
Naqvi, who is also the interior minister in his country, also faces the prospect of a public backlash if PCB is seen to be backing down without any tangible gains. The PCB source though rejected speculation that the Board would get a bonus of $20 million besides the hosting fees of $6 million for the Champions Trophy for conceding to India’s demands. “Pakistan has taken only one stance and that is in future, it will also not play in India in any ICC events and the Hybrid model should be applied for all future ICC events that Pakistan and India will play their games at neutral venues,” he said.
Earlier, Naqvi also met Emirates Cricket Board head Mubashir Usmani in Dubai, conveying that Pakistan was ready to host the Champions Trophy and all the preparations were on schedule. According to a PCB statement regarding the meeting, Naqvi told Usmani that Pakistan was ready to host the Champions Trophy and all the preparations were on schedule.
Advertisement
Usmani is also the chairman of the ICC’s associate members’ committee. According to sources, Naqvi also said the situation in Pakistan was stable and all teams taking part in the mega-event would be provided state level security. He said the construction work at the stadiums which will host the tournament was also on schedule and the people of Pakistan were looking forward to watching the best teams and players play in the country.
(Manas Dasgupta)
