Champions Trophy 2025: ICC proposes 20-day tentative window, Indian Govt unlikely to allow India's participation in Pakistan

While the extravaganza of the T20 World Cup 2024 is on, the International Cricket Council (ICC), the apex council and organizer for the Champions Trophy, has realized a 20-day window for the 2025 edition of the tournament, scheduled in Pakistan. The tentative window states that the Champions Trophy will be held between February 19 to March 09, making it a 19-day(+1 reserve day) affair.

However, it is highly unlikely that the Indian team, the 2017 finalists, are unlikely to travel to the defending champions' country. This comes amid Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) retention of governance after recently concluded general elections, which hints towards an unchanged foreign policy towards the neighbouring country, according to Cricbuzz.

In power since 2014, the Narendra Modi-led government has kept a strict refrainment to engage with the neighbouring country in any friendly manner. The matter has worsened after the infamous Pulwama and Uri attacks. As a result, both nations haven't been involved in any bilateral contests since Pakistan's 2012-13 tour of India for a multi-format series. Post that, both the sides have only met in multinational tournaments.

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Report has further suggested that due to the party maintaining its power in the country, India's view towards Pakistan as an alien nation is likely to remain unaltered. This largely implies that the ICC maybe forced to use the hybrid model to host the tournament, with UAE being the frontrunner as co-host.

Clarity over India's travel expected in next couple of months

For the unversed, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had already confirmed that the Men in Blue will play all their matches of the tournament at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium, the closest venue to the Wagah Border. This would have provided least logistical and security challenges for India, also allowing the fans a cross-border experience to watch the games. 

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has strictly abided by the government directives in the past, and the board is expected to follow suit.

“We will have some idea in the next two months,” a source in the know was quoted as saying.

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It is anticipated that the ICC must have already informed the Indian board to communicate with the government, so that they could come to a final decision after its July's annual conference in Colombo.