Pakistan tables ‘tit-for-tat formula’; deadlock persists over Champions Trophy format

ISLAMABAD: The standoff over the 2025 Champions Trophy continues as the International Cricket Council (ICC), Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) fail to reach an agreement, AFP reported on Wednesday.

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi traveled to Dubai for a key meeting aimed at finalizing tournament arrangements. While initial reports suggested Pakistan and India had agreed in principle to a hybrid model for the event, negotiations hit another impasse.

The conflict stems from the BCCI’s refusal to send its team to Pakistan, citing security and political concerns. In response, the PCB proposed a hybrid formula under which group-stage matches would be hosted in Pakistan, with high-profile matches, including the India-Pakistan clash, and possibly the final, held in Dubai. If India does not reach the final, the PCB suggests Lahore as the venue.

AFP reported from its sources that the PCB agreed to the hybrid model, “but only on condition that every ICC tournament taking place in India until 2027 follows the same format, with Pakistan not going to India.”

“But the BCCI is objecting to the tit-for-tat condition on its own hosting and to the proposal to play the final in Lahore if India do not qualify,” AFP reported, quoting its sources.

Sources indicate that Pakistan tried to make concessions, but the reciprocal gestures demanded from India remain a sticking point.

The high-stakes rivalry between Pakistan and India is one of the most-watched spectacles in international sports. Any disruption to their matches in ICC tournaments could result in significant financial losses for the ICC and both nations.

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The unresolved dispute has left the ICC unable to finalize and announce the tournament schedule for the event, slated to run from February 19 to March 19, 2025.

During the last few years, Pakistan hosted world’s top cricket teams, breaking the cricket isolation that began in 2009. However, India did not tour Pakistan since 2008 Asia Cup — a year before the untoward incident happened to Sri Lankan team.