While the window for the eight-team ODI tournament has been booked between February 19 and March, the ICC has also not announced the dates or the official schedule. Normally, for a global tournament, the ICC has in the past announced the schedule 100 days before the event.
The reason for the delay is the Indian government’s refusal to allow Rohit Sharma’s team to travel to Pakistan. This decision was communicated to the ICC two weeks ago. The PCB, which was awarded the rights to host the Champions Trophy in 2021, subsequently wrote to the ICC asking several questions about the exact reasons given by the BCCI and when it had informed the ICC about it . According to a PCB official, they have not received a response from the ICC so far.
PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi remained committed to hosting the entire tournament in Pakistan, across three venues: Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi. Last week, he said he would be open to a dialogue with the BCCI to break the impasse. An ICC spokesperson confirmed Friday’s meeting, but the PCB has not yet made any comment.
The ICC Board of Directors includes representatives from the 12 full member countries, three associate representatives, an independent director and the ICC President and CEO. The meeting comes just as the term of current ICC President Greg Barclay ends. This will be the last meeting of the board of directors that he chairs before being replaced on Sunday December 1 by Jay Shah, secretary of the BCCI and key figure in the Champions Trophy file.
Naqvi, the PCB chairman, is also a key figure in the Pakistani government, serving as interior minister. In recent days, he has been preoccupied in Islamabad with trying to quell political protests by PTI, the party of former prime minister (and captain) Imran Khan.
Additional reporting by Osman Samiuddin
