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News Wasim Akram urges India to travel to Pakistan for Champions Trophy 2025 "I can promise you, they [are] going to get looked after amazingly well. The young cricket fans adore them" Alex Malcolm 31-Oct-2024 • 14 mins ago Wasim Akram has a word with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid • Getty Images {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","contentUrl":"https://img1.
hscicdn.com/image/upload/f_auto/lsci/db/PICTURES/CMS/367000/367036.4.
jpg","caption":"Wasim Akram has a word with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid"} Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram believes India will get looked after 'amazingly well' if they travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy in February next year and reckons it would be a great thing for cricket. "I think whatever I'm reading there are positive vibes from [the] Indian government and [the] BCCI," Akram said. "I also read somewhere they will play probably all their games in Lahore.
They will probably come to Lahore and travel [back] the same night. I'm all for it, as long as India is comfortable. "And I can promise you, they [are] going to get looked after amazingly well.
I mean, Indian cricketers like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, [Hardik] Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, they have fans in Pakistan. The young cricket fans adore them." The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) remains intent on hosting the entire Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan between February 19 and March 9.
It has even proposed to have all of India's matches take place in Lahore , which is close to the Indian border and makes logistics and security hurdles less complicated. PCB also said that it would grant about 17,000 visas to Indian fans who wanted to follow their team. The final will be held in Lahore, as will any semi-final that India play, if they qualify.
Related PCB chief 'confident' of India's visit to Pakistan for Champions Trophy 2025 Champions Trophy without India not an option, say ECB chiefs Champions Trophy 2025: PCB draft schedule has all India games in Lahore Speaking ahead of Pakistan's six-match ODI and T20I tour of Australia that begins on Monday, Akram was hopeful India would come to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy. "People-to-people contact is very important in this day and age," he said. "In this social media age, there's so much negativity all over the world, unnecessary negativity, in my opinion, and I think if India come, it will be great for cricket, and of course, it'll be great for Pakistan too.
" India have not played an international match in Pakistan since 2008, and the UAE is believed to be the likeliest - though not only - alternate venue should any part of the Champions Trophy be moved out. The BCCI did not send a team to Pakistan last year for the Asia Cup, prompting the tournament to be shifted to a hybrid model with the latter stages played in Sri Lanka. Last year, Pakistan travelled to India for the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they missed out on a semi-final spot.
Earlier this month, the ECB's chief executive Richard Gould and chair Richard Thompson, said that there are "lots of different alternatives and contingencies available" in the event that India do not travel to Pakistan, raising the possibility of a hybrid model being used. But they clarified that the Champions Trophy going ahead without India's involvement is not an option as "it would not be in cricket's interests for India not to be playing in the Champions Trophy." The Champions Trophy will feature eight teams, with two groups of four followed by semi-finals and a final.
The competing teams are: Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa. Wasim Akram Pakistan India Alex Malcolm is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo.
