The Champions Trophy is possibly the most prestigious event in the history of ODI cricket after the ICC Cricket World Cup.
And perhaps is also significant for a Southern African nation who can hold their head high in surmounting this revered championship in an otherwise dismal saga of ICC tournament triumphs eluding them like logic to emotion.
Yes, South Africa holds the mighty fine accolade of winning this coveted event right at its inception in 1998 under the able and astute leadership of the late Hansie Cronje.
From that time, this tournament has seven more editions with India and Pakistan contesting the last edition’s final in 2017 at The Oval as the latter overcame the former with much vigour on that occasion.
The contest at the time was filled with drama galore on the field and as seasons have passed, another edition is upon us as these two powerhouses are again at loggerheads albeit this time off the field.
Yes, Pakistan is hosting the ninth edition of this tournament early next year and recently the BCCI announced that India won’t travel across the border citing security concerns as advised by their government.
The Pakistan Cricket Board noticeably hasn’t taken too kindly to this decision and has asked the BCCI for a written confirmation as to why they can’t travel to Pakistan with the pertinent reasons.
While BCCI is yet to respond, the world is fully aware that come what may, India won’t travel to Pakistan which leaves the future of this tournament in uncertainty galore.
With this being said, let us look at some scenarios which dwell into how the future of this coveted championship might pan out:
Pakistan hosts the entire tournament sans India
If this beautiful sport that we so love was only dictated by the purity of performance, this scenario perhaps could well have taken shape.
With this being said, in a realistic world this situation is rather utopian as cricket is not only dictated by performance but by financial viability, making this sport more of entertainment than a game.
Speaking of financial viability, not only the world but our entire galaxy is well aware that a tournament without India can’t even be a thought for the ICC, let alone a possibility.
Such is the hold; the BCCI has on world cricket, contributing almost 70% to the global profits with the viewership from India soaring in crores.
Keeping the aforementioned in mind, the likelihood of India not participating in this tournament is like human civilization not procreating.
Highly unlikely!
The tournament goes hybrid
If one were to only treat this tournament by logic, this scenario is more than a possibility.
All India matches can be shifted to the UAE and Pakistan can still keep the hosting rights with the rest of the tournament being held in this massively cricket crazy country.
The only caveat, Pakistan’s pride takes a massive blow!
Yes, it’s almost been an eternity that Pakistan has got the rights to host an ICC tournament with the last being the 1996 World Cup that was co-hosted by them.
Such has been the gap, with this nation being marred by security concerns making it unviable for hosting until now.
Considering this, the PCB most certainly would want to show to the entire world that they are more than capable of making a global tournament a much-revered success with India included.
Also, what might dent their pride even further is that they don’t have much of an option but to travel to India when their neighbour hosts an ICC tournament with the prime example being the ODI World Cup last year and even the 2016 T20 World Cup.
After all, the participation fee is at stake and the PCB surely can’t let go of the earnings in question.
But when it comes to Pakistan hosting, India does not extend the same courtesy and the ICC can’t do much with the clout India holds in world cricket.
Not a very healthy state of affairs, if one were to be honest but it is what it is.
Truth be told, it’s not just a battle between the powers at play of these two nations but also a defining moment for the entire cricketing world, with the fate of the remaining six nations that are participating in this coveted tournament, also hanging in the balance.
So as time would throw light on the fate of the 2025 Champions Trophy, we as cricket admirers would undoubtedly hope this tournament does see the light of day with this beautiful game being the final winner.