India is highly unlikely to travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy 2025 which is scheduled to take place in Feb-Mar next year.

The Sri Lanka cricket team will replace India cricket team if the latter decide to pull out of the Champions Trophy 2025. Rohit Sharma and co. are highly unlikely to travel to Pakistan which is scheduled to host the marquee tournament next year. As per reports, Sri Lanka who did not qualify for CT 2025 owing to their 9th placed finish in the 2023 ODI World Cup will replace India.

Sri Lanka, who were the winners of the event in 2002, failed to qualify for the Champions Trophy for the first-time ever. While India is unlikely to travel to Pakistan, the BCCI is likely to request that the International Cricket Council (ICC) relocate the event to either Sri Lanka or the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The final decision on India’s participation in Pakistan rests with the Indian government. BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla previously stated that the team would only travel to Pakistan with government approval.

This wouldn’t be the first time India’s stance has impacted a tournament’s location. The 2023 Asia Cup was held in a “hybrid” format due to the same issue. All of India’s matches were played in Sri Lanka, while the remaining teams competed in Pakistan.

Source: Inside sport
--Agencies