South Africa Not Yet Proposed As Champions Trophy Hosts, ICC In Talks With Participating Nations: Report

The International Cricket Council is still discussing the Champions Trophy schedule with its participating countries, even as a travel issue across the border from India to Pakistan continues. There have been reports that since India has straightaway disagreed to travel to Pakistan, the Champions Trophy might be moved out of the country, which has expectedly not gone down well with Pakistan cricket's stakeholders. There was chatter that South Africa could be a viable alternative to organising next year's Champions Trophy. However, according to a report in PTI, no such discussion occurred at ICC on Tuesday. The International Cricket Council has put the Champions Trophy's launch event on hold, which was scheduled to be held in Lahore on November 11.The International Cricket Council has also got a letter from the Pakistan Cricket Board, asking for a written and official confirmation from BCCI for their team's inability to travel to Pakistan for the tournament. The Pakistan Cricket Board has told ICC that security is not an issue in the country which has hosted England for a three-Test series very recently. While it is highly likely that the tournament will be played in the hybrid model, PCB has stated that it is absolutely against this idea. Last year, the Asia Cup was also held in the hybrid model after India refused to travel to Pakistan. ICC hasn't yet replied to the Pakistan Cricket Board and is discussing possibilities with the participating nations. According to the report in PTI, PCB isn't keen to host the Champions Trophy outside the nation, not even in the United Arab Emirates, which is the first option in case of a hybrid model. The launch event, where the schedule was to be unveiled, has been pushed back. It was being planned in Lahore as per ICC management's briefing to the ICC CEC and ICC Board on October 21 in Dubai.