DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has formally approved the ‘merger formula’ proposed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for the 2025 Men’s Champions Trophy and future events organized by either country, officials say. reports.
According to Indian media, the decision was taken during an unofficial meeting of cricket’s governing body.
With this, India will now play their matches of the eight-team tournament in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
In return, the Green Shirts will not travel to India for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and therefore their matches will take place in Sri Lanka – the co-host of the tournament – including the blockbuster Indo-Pak clash.
The decision on the qualifiers for this event will be made closer to the moment.
Reports further suggested that the PCB will not receive any financial compensation for agreeing to the hybrid model for the 2025 Champions Trophy, but has been awarded the hosting rights for an ICC women’s tournament after 2027.
Notably, both the PCB and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have already reached an agreement in principle on the above-mentioned formula.
Meanwhile, sources said that the ICC is likely to make an official announcement regarding the Champions Trophy in the next 24 hours.
“Discussions regarding the Champions Trophy are ongoing,” said an ICC source.
“Once the issues are resolved, it will be announced through a press release. Everything will become clear in the next 24 hours,” he added.
For the unversed, the eight-team tournament will take place from February 19 to March 9, but the full schedule for the event has not yet been announced.
Sohail Imran is a senior reporter at Geo News.
