ICC ‘postpones’ crucial Champions Trophy encounter due to lack of response from BCCI

• ICC meeting adjourned due to lack of response from BCCI: sources
• Regulatory body trying to finalize Champions Trophy programme.
• The meeting will take place once the issues are finalized at executive level.
  

LAHORE: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has postponed its crucial meeting regarding Champions Trophy 2025, which was to be held today (Saturday). Geo News he said citing sources.

The sources revealed that the meeting was postponed due to the lack of response from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to the demands made by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) regarding the long-running dispute between the two sides over the venue of the long-awaited Champions Trophy 2025.

Pakistan and India reportedly made a “breakthrough” on the venue issue a day earlier, agreeing to play their matches at neutral venues for ICC tournaments hosted by one of them.

Sources said that under the new arrangement, India’s matches will be played in Dubai, while Pakistan’s matches in the T20 World Cup hosted by India will also be played at neutral venues.

The agreement will reportedly apply to all ICC events until 2027.

During this period, India is set to host the Women’s ODI World Cup in October 2024 and the Men’s T20 World Cup in 2026, along with Sri Lanka and Pakistan had insisted on a mutual hybrid agreement for these events in India.

After accepting Pakistan’s basic term yesterday, sources said, the schedule of the event was expected to be announced within the next 48 hours as the ICC was scheduled to meet again today.

The Champions Trophy is scheduled to start in February, hosted by Pakistan, although India has refused to send its team to Pakistan, citing traditional reluctance.

Earlier in the day, sources said Pakistan and India were also engaged in ongoing discussions with the ICC also being part of the talks aimed at finding a solution and finalizing the tournament schedule – which was being reworked due to the hybrid model.

Issues discussed by stakeholders include those related to logistics.

The ICC meeting, the sources noted, will take place once the issues are finalized at the executive level.

In addition, they also highlighted the progress in the behind-the-scenes dialogue and said that the issues were close to being resolved.

“Things have started to move in a positive way [….] The ICC is expected to make an announcement soon,” they added.

Pakistan, according to sources, is expected to earn $6 million from the hosting rights, excluding additional revenue from ticket sales and hospitality.

However, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has to allocate $1.2–1.3 million for tournament insurance.

In comparison, India enjoys a significant financial advantage, receiving 38% of the ICC’s annual revenue share of $90–95 million.

In recent years, the ICC has ensured that India plays Pakistan at least once in every world cricket match, securing a significant chunk of revenue from this game.

The India-Pakistan 2023 World Cup match attracted unprecedented interest, with 173 million viewers on Indian television and 225 million digital viewers.

The T20 World Cup 2021 match between the two sides reached 167 million viewers and drove 15.9 billion minutes of engagement in India alone, highlighting Pakistan’s role in generating cricket viewership and revenue.