Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez dismissed the speculation regarding India receiving an unfair advantage over other teams in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, where all matches, including the knockout stages, were held at the Dubai International Stadium. Hafeez asserted that the belief that India benefits from the ICC is misguided. He emphasized that India is the only team that strategically plans to succeed in ICC tournaments and substantiates this with their on-field performance.

The Champions Trophy was conducted in a hybrid format due to the Indian government's restrictions on its cricket team traveling to Pakistan. After extensive discussions, it was determined that hosting all of India's matches, including potential knockout games, in Dubai was the most viable solution for the tournament. However, as the competition unfolded and India began to outperform other teams, the idea of a venue advantage gained traction, particularly among notable former and current cricketers.

Hafeez pointed out that the priorities of various cricket boards differ significantly. Using South Africa and Pakistan as examples, he noted that these boards, lacking substantial financial resources to offer lucrative contracts to their players for international matches, often permit their players to participate in various franchise leagues even during bilateral series.

"I traveled to South Africa in 2021, and they sent their players to the IPL. They are not a financially robust board; they seek revenue. They fielded their C team against Pakistan and subsequently allowed their players to join the IPL even during a Test series against New Zealand. When the SA20 league emerged, they began to treat it as a significant revenue source, unwilling to compromise on that front. That is their policy," Hafeez stated on Game on Hai.

The former cricketer further remarked that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) consented to host multi-nation tournaments in a hybrid format primarily due to financial considerations. Hafeez noted that Pakistan did not gain anything substantial from hosting the Champions Trophy in this manner, apart from monetary benefits, which is not the case for India.

Read Also: Champions Trophy Final: New Zealand Pinpoints India’s Key Danger

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