The ICC has announce that the India and Pakistan matches in the 2024-27 events will be hosted in a neutral venue. It applies to all the upcoming ICC tournaments, including the upcoming ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 as well as the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. In compensation, the PCB has been awarded hosting rights of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2028, where the neutral venue arrangements will be enforced.
The ICC also assured that the schedule for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025 will be announced soon. The confusion surrounding the venue of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is over. After months of delay, the International Cricket Council (ICC) finally officially declared the venues for the elite event. “ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 to be played across Pakistan and a neutral venue,” the ICC said in a statement. It means India will play its matches in a neutral venue, including the knockouts games (if it qualifies). In another major decision, the Jay Shah-led world body has declared that all India vs Pakistan cricket matches in ICC events, hosted by the two countries, will be played at neutral venues till 2027.
“India and Pakistan matches hosted by either country at ICC Events during the 2024-2027 rights cycle will be played at a neutral venue, the ICC Board confirmed on Thursday, 19 December,” the statement said. “This will apply to the upcoming ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 (hosted by Pakistan), set to be played in February and March 2025, as well as the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 (hosted by India) and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 (hosted by India and Sri Lanka).”
The ‘compromise’ on the part of the ICC, however, means that for the first time, the Indian cricket team will have to move out from its own country to play Pakistan in an ICC event, despite being the host or co-host. For a country that boasts itself to be a cricket power-house, that might hurt. India and Pakistan have played each other only in ICC or Asian Cricket Council (ACC) events in more than a decade now. In this duration, whenever Pakistan has hosted an ICC or ACC event, India did not travel to the country and played its matches at a neutral venue.
India last toured Pakistan for a bilateral series in 2005-06. Pakistan last toured India for a bilateral series in 2012-13.
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