DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has summoned a meeting, scheduled to take place here on Thursday, amid the ongoing ambiguity surrounding the Pakistan-hosted Champions Trophy.
According to the details, the agenda of the meeting, however, is not the eight-team tournament, but to welcome Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah as the ICC chairman, who assumed the role on Sunday.
However, sources suggested that the discussions regarding the prestigious tournament may take place during the meeting, scheduled to take place at 8 PM (Gulf Standard Time).
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi will also attend the meeting and thus, will depart for Dubai on Thursday morning.
It is pertinent to mention that the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is at a standstill following BCCI’s refusal to send its team to Pakistan, while PCB remained firm on its stance of opposing the hybrid model for the eight-team tournament.
However, in the latest turn of events, a new model, dubbed as ‘partnership formula’, is under consideration to end the deadlock between PCB and BCCI.
As per the new formula, Pakistan will also not play their matches in India during ICC events for next three years. Dubai is most likely to be the neutral venue for both the teams as per the expected new agreement.
India is scheduled to host three ICC events during this time period, including Women's World Cup 2025, co-hosting of T20 World Cup 2026 with Sri Lanka and Champions Trophy 2027.
Details further shared that the apex cricketing body has advised the BCCI to accept the aforementioned model, in a bid to avoid legal action by Pakistan and also to resolve the issue without voting.
If the proposed formula gets mutually agreed upon then there may not be a need for the board meeting and the apex cricketing body will communicate the development with the board members.
In addition to the crucial meeting surrounding the Champions Trophy deadlock, a workshop for broadcasters and production teams concerning the prestigious event is also scheduled for tomorrow.
Faizan Lakhani Faizan Lakhani is Deputy Editor (Sports) at Geo News.
