The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 debate has created a row amidst sports and political turmoil in India. The country is under criticism for refusing to send its cricket team to Pakistan, which raised the question of where the limits of sports and diplomacy start and end. Where does it leave the cricketing world with one question: Will we see India in Pakistan for CT25?
If Prime Minister Modi could go to Pakistan in 2015, why can’t our cricket team go? Sports should unite, not divide,” said the former cricketer Tejashwi Yadav. His remark comes in reference to the surprise trip that Modi made to Lahore to meet Nawaz Sharif to indicate the different ways the sports engagements have been handled.
India in Pakistan for CT25 unlikely, hybrid model proposed
The controversy over India in Pakistan for CT25 has deeper implications for the tournament. India has proposed a hybrid model, suggesting its matches be played at neutral venues like Sri Lanka or the UAE. However, Pakistan’s cricket board has strongly opposed this idea, demanding India play all its matches in Pakistan. The impasse has led to an emergency ICC meeting scheduled for Friday to seek a resolution.
Political leaders are not on the same page either. Trinamool MP Kirti Azad firmly opposed the idea, citing terrorism concerns. “Dialogue and terror cannot coexist. We can’t play cricket with a nation that sponsors terrorism,” he said. This sums up the old animosity between the neighbors.
India in Pakistan for CT25 would mark a historic moment, as the Indian team last toured Pakistan in 2008 for the Asia Cup. Since then, political strains have limited their encounters to ICC tournaments, leaving fans longing for the fierce rivalry on Pakistan’s soil.
The future of the Champions Trophy hangs in the balance as the ICC deliberates on the matter, with the world watching whether cricket diplomacy can bridge a fraught political divide.
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