BCCI will have to provide written proof if New Delhi denies permission for Champions Trophy in Pakistan: PCB

Rumours of the BCCI refusing to send the Indian team to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy next year appear to have made their way to the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) headquarters at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, leading to a stern response from the Mohsin Naqvi-led body.

The BCCI had previously cited the Indian government’s refusal to grant permission due to security concerns as the reason behind its decision to not send the Men in Blue across the border.

That had been the case in last year’s Asia Cup, which was supposed to be held entirely in Pakistan but was ultimately held in a hybrid model that led to several fixtures, including the final, being moved to Sri Lanka.

Read | Pakistan will host Champions Trophy despite India’s reluctance to travel: Mohsin Naqvi

With the PCB anticipating a similar situation in the coming months, they’ve sought written proof of the Centre denying the Indian team permission to travel to Pakistan from the BCCI.

“If the India government declines permission, it has to be in writing and it is mandatory on the BCCI to provide that letter to the ICC now,” a PCB source working closely with organising committee told news agency PTI.

“It is a fact that the we are insistent that the BCCI must inform the ICC about its travel plans to Pakistan at least 5-6 months before the tournament and in writing,” added the source.

The PCB had initially planned to host all of India’s matches, including the marquee clash against Pakistan, at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium in order to minimise their travel and offer the Rohit Sharma-led side maximum security. Karachi and Rawalpindi are the other two cities that the PCB’s shortlisted for the tournament.

The BCCI’s reported reluctance, however, has cast a shadow over those plans for now.

Read | PCB’s tentative Champions Trophy schedule with IND-PAK clash on 1 March yet to receive BCCI’s nod

India have not visited Pakistan since the 2008 Asia Cup, in which they lost the final against Sri Lanka in Karachi. The last time the Men in Blue had toured Pakistan for a bilateral series was in 2006, in which it lost the three-Test series 0-1 but won the ODI leg 4-1.

Relations between the two nations have worsened due to political tensions and cross-border terrorism, and had reached an all-time low after the terror attacks in Mumbai in November 2008.

As a result, India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral series since the latter came to India in the 2012-13 season for a three-match ODI series, and the two teams meet each other only in ICC events and in the Asia Cup.

Read | If Virat Kohli visits Pakistan, he will forget the love he received in India: Shahid Afridi

Pakistan had also become a no-go zone in the cricketing world after the Sri Lankan team had been attacked in Lahore in March 2009, and no team would tour the country until Zimbabwe in 2015.

Full Members, however, have gradually been visiting Pakistan in recent years with teams such as Australia, England, New Zealand and South Africa having played Tests. Even Sri Lanka, the team that had come under attack, played a Test series a decade after the incident.

The upcoming Champions Trophy, which is expected to take place in February and March next year, will be the first ICC event in Pakistan since it co-hosted the 1996 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka.

The ‘Mini World Cup’ itself will be returning to action eight years after Pakistan had been crowned champions after thrashing India by 180 runs at The Oval, with the ICC deciding to host the event on the defending champions’ home turf.