Jos Buttler comments on India playing all Champions Trophy games in Dubai: 'It's a unique tournament already'

There have been plenty of talking points in the week that has passed since the ninth edition of the ICC Champions Trophy got underway. Among those talking points is the perceived advantage that the Indian cricket team has been getting as a result of playing all of its matches at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

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Two-time champions India, who had finished runners-up in the previous edition nearly eight-years ago, have qualified for the semi-finals after acing run-chases against Bangladesh and Pakistan. Their victories over the past week, however, has led to discussions on the Men in Blue possibly benefiting from being the only team to play all of their matches at a single venue in the Champions Trophy.

What Jos Buttler said India’s ‘Hybrid Model’ advantage

English cricketer-turned-commentators Nasser Hussain and Mike Atherton had discussed the topic on Sky Sports while renowned journalists described the current situation as a “farce”. On Tuesday, on the eve of his team’s must-win clash against Afghanistan in Lahore, England captain Jos Buttler took a subtle dig at how the 2025 Champions Trophy has panned out while adding that his focus was on ensuring his team’s passage to the next round.

“Not really. I think it’s a unique tournament already, isn’t it, with being hosted here with one team playing in a different place but that’s not something I’m sort of worried too much about at the moment. I’ve got all my focus on preparing well tonight and our game tomorrow,” Buttler said in the pre-match press conference on Tuesday.

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India are playing all of their matches in Dubai after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) refused to send the Men in Blue to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy due to security concerns as well as political tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

The PCB, thus, was forced to accept a ‘Hybrid Model’ for the Champions Trophy – similar to the one that was in place for the Asia Cup in 2023 – in which all of India’s matches were moved to Dubai.

Dubai and Lahore will later be hosting the two semi-finals on 4 and 5 March respectively, with the venue for the final yet to be decided. The Dubai International Cricket Stadium will host the summit clash if India go the distance.

If not, then Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium will host the final of an ICC event for the first time since the 1996 World Cup – the last time Pakistan had hosted a global event.