CT trophy tour hits rough weather after strong BCCI protest

CT Trophy Tour in Limbo Due to BCCI Protest

After the ICC sent the Champions Trophy silverware on tour in Pakistan, the journey has hit a roadblock due to a strong protest from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The tour was scheduled to visit Skardu, Hunza, and Muzaffarabad, but has been called off.

Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary and incoming ICC Chair, objected to the PCB plans to take the trophy to POK areas, calling it "not acceptable" to the BCCI.

The PCB had announced the tour on its social media handles, stating that the trophy would visit Islamabad, Skardu, Murree, Hunza, and Muzaffarabad from November 16-24. The tour was also scheduled to include a visit to K2, the world's second-highest peak.

Queries to the ICC and PCB remain unanswered, but PCB sources claim that the tour was not a unilateral decision and was finalized in consultation with the ICC.

The PCB is now consulting the ICC on how to proceed, with one option being to confine the tour to the hosting centres of Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Lahore. The trophy is currently in Islamabad and will only move forward once clearance is obtained from the ICC.

The latest controversy may have further complicated matters for the already-impacted Champions Trophy, which is scheduled to take place from February 19 to March 9.