Champions Trophy 2025: South Africa, Australia to travel to Dubai due to messy scheduling

The ICC Champions Trophy semi-final schedule has created a logistical challenge across two countries for the two Group B qualifiers,South Africa and Australia. Regardless of where they eventually play their semi-final game, both the teams will have to travel to the UAE on Saturday, March 1.

An ICC official elaborated that the decision was made to maximise the preparation time for the team playing in Dubai on March 4. Nevertheless, it also results in an troublesome circumstance where one team will leave Pakistan for Dubai, only to comeback the next day if their semifinal on March 5 is set to be in Lahore. It is certain that one of the teams will eventually end up making an unnecessary to and fro to a location where it will not even play a game. 

Australia have already qualified for the semi-final after their last group-stage game against Afghanistan got washed-out in Lahore on Friday, and the team is en route to Dubai. South Africa, who are almost a certainty for the semis, will travel from Karachi to Dubai on March 1, after the conclusion of their final match against England.

Meanwhile, the semi-final venues and matchups will only be confirmed once India faces New Zealand in the final group-stage match on Sunday, March 2. As for India, they are set to play in Dubai irrespective of their group standings, meaning that the two Group B teams will only find out their semi-final venue after their fixture against New Zealand.

Despite Pakistan being the official tournament host, India's decision to not travel there forced the tournament to follow a hybrid model. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) negotiated with the ICC to have India play all their games in Lahore owing to its proximity with the Indian border, but the BCCI cited government restrictions preventing them from doing so amid ongoing political complications between the two nations.  

As things stand, if India qualify for the final, then the fixture will be held in Dubai; if they lose, then it will take place at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.