Islamabad
The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Saturday has officially launched the Trophy Tour for the upcoming Champions Trophy, but it has excluded cities in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) from the itinerary after strong objections raised by India.
Initially, the tour, announced by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Nov 14, included cities such as Skardu, Hunza, and Muzaffarabad, all located in the PoK region, a disputed area between India and Pakistan. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah raised concerns with the ICC regarding the inclusion of these cities, leading the global body to take swift action and drop them from the itinerary.
As a result, the ICC Champions Trophy Trophy Tour will now visit cities in Pakistan including Karachi, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, and Abbottabad in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Region. The revised schedule will see the Trophy visit Islamabad (Nov 16), followed by Taxila and Khanpur (Nov 17), Abbottabad (Nov 18), Murree (Nov 19), Nathia Gali (Nov 20), and concluding in Karachi from Nov 22-25. These cities are known for their tourist attractions and have a strong cricket fan base.
The ICC confirmed that the revised tour is part of a global series of physical and digital engagements across iconic destinations, featuring key battles in the international cricket calendar
Following its Pakistan leg, the Trophy will travel to Afghanistan (Nov 26-28), Bangladesh (Dec 10-13), South Africa (Dec 15-22), Australia (Dec 25-Jan 5), New Zealand (Jan 6-11), England (Jan 12-14), and India (Jan 15-26). The cities outside Pakistan will be announced in due course.
