Ex-India Star Blames Pakistan For Champions Trophy Row: “There Was A Bomb Blast…”

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was informed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Sunday that India will not be travelling to Pakistan for Champions Trophy 2025. There was a lot of chatter surrounding India’s participation in the competition but the Indian government decided to not grant permission to the national side. Earlier, the BCCI suggested a hybrid theory that involved India playing their games in Dubai but it was rejected by the PCB who wanted to host the entire tournament in Pakistan. Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra said that Pakistan are to blame for the current scenario.

“It has been decided that India won’t go to Pakistan, and this is not the BCCI’s decision. Let’s make it very, very clear. India’s cricket team doesn’t decide where and when they will go when we talk about Pakistan. For the other places. it’s fine. However, if you are going to Pakistan, it’s not the BCCI’s but the Indian government’s decision,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

“They have communicated that they will not give the permission to go there. So India are not going. In a way, they (Pakistan) have themselves to blame. Yesterday only I saw that there was a bomb blast in a railway station in Quetta, and then whatever Pakistan are involved in when we talk about India, especially Kashmir,” he added.

Chopra speculated that if the Champions Trophy goes forward, India’s matches may be shifted to a neutral location like the UAE.

“The last PCB board chief during the 2023 ODI World Cup said ‘dushman mulk ja rahe hum’ (we are going into the enemy’s territory). In the future, if Pakistan decides not to play against India, there will be repercussions. India will also face repercussions if they do not visit Pakistan, but the sanctions will be financial, and how can the ICC stop India’s money going to India? Pakistan do not have that kind of leverage. This is the hard reality. I feel it is absolutely certain that there will be no Champions Trophy without India. Every team, including Pakistan, understands this,” Chopra said.

(With IANS inputs)