ICC "confident" 2025 Champions Trophy will be held in Pakistan

The Internationational Cricket Council (ICC) is “comfortable and confident” that the 2025 Champions Trophy will be staged in Pakistan, according to ESPNCricinfo.

The cricket council awarded Pakistan the hosting rights for the event. It will be the first global event to be staged in Pakistan since the 1996 World Cup. Their decision came after New Zealand and England cancelled their tour of Pakistan citing security reasons.

Greg Barclay, the Independent Chair of the ICC, said it will be an exciting prospecting for Pakistan to host a global event after a long time.

Watch: Pakistan to host 2025 Champions Trophy, announces ICC

“We wouldn’t have awarded the event if we didn’t think Pakistan was capable of hosting it,” he was quoted saying in a report. “We think it is an exciting opportunity for them to be able to host a world event for the first time in a long time. I’m sure, as with all countries, they will put together appropriate security plans to deliver the event. We’re comfortable and confident it will go ahead.”

Recently, India’s sports minister Anurag Thakur expressed apprehensions about his national side’s participation in the tournament. However, Barclay claimed that there was little could do.

“We know it’s a challenging issue. From my point of view, I can’t control geo-political forces. I just hope cricket can be a force to help improve relations between countries. One of the great things sports can do is to help bring nations together. If we can do something in a small way to contribute to that, that’s fantastic,” he said.