India vs Pakistan: PCB open to bilateral series if India plays Champions Trophy in Pakistan

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said they are open to playing India in a bilateral series, if the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) sends the Indian team to play the ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan in 2025.

The ICC has awarded the Champions Trophy 2025 hosting rights to Pakistan.

The PCB chairman, Mohsin Naqvi, said the focus right now for his country’s cricket board is to successfully host the ICC Champions Trophy and added that if India plays the ICC tournament in Pakistan, the board will look into a bilateral series in the Future Tours Programme (FTP).

“If any options in this regard (India vs Pakistan bilateral series) come, we will consider it, but our target right now is to host the Champions Trophy and first let India come for the tournament. Right now, till the Champions Trophy, there is no slot available as our team has a packed itinerary. Once they come here first, then we can look at any proposal whenever it comes before us,” Naqvi told the media in Lahore.

India and Pakistan only play in ICC tournaments, and India hasn’t toured Pakistan since 2008. However, both India and Pakistan face each other in ICC tournaments, notably the World Cups.

Pakistan toured India for an ODI series in 2012 and has also visited the country for the 2011, 2016 and 2023 World Cups.

Recently, the BCCI refused to send the Indian cricket team to Pakistan to play the Asia Cup in 2023. The tournament was then played in a hybrid model, with India playing all their matches in Sri Lanka.

India and Pakistan are slated to meet in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup on June 9 in New York.