Indian cricket team will not travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy and want to play their matches at a neutral venue.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), in a recent communication to the Pakistan Cricket Board, has cited security concerns for its decision and expressed the desire to play all games in Dubai.
“Yes, the BCCI has conveyed their concerns regarding Champions Trophy matches in Pakistan. They want to play matches at a neutral venue and Dubai is the strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue,” a source said.
The top eight teams of the world are to take part in the February 19 to March 9 50-overs ICC event that has Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi as host cities.
BCCI continued to stick to its stand over Pakistan “in consultation with the government”. Last year before the Asia Cup, India, despite the pressure from hosts Pakistan, had managed to shift its matches to Sri Lanka.
Dubai is a comfortable option as the ICC has hosted numerous high-profile tournaments there and seamlessly hosted the recent Women’s T20 World Cup which was moved from Bangladesh due to political unrest in the country.
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The International Cricket Council (ICC) had already drafted the schedule for the multi-nation tournament and India were supposed to play their games in Lahore. The PCB has already commenced an upgrade drive of its existing venues for the 50-over tournament.
Of late Pakistan has hosted international teams like England and Bangladesh. The last time India toured Pakistan was in the 2008 Asia Cup.
