New Delhi: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) issued a clarification after a viral video of the National Stadium in Karachi sparked a controversy ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025. The video showed that the flags of all teams participating in the tournament were hoisted at the stadium, barring India’s, leading to outrage on social media.
A total of 8 teams will be taking part in the Champions Trophy 2025 which is set to get underway in Pakistan on Wednesday, February 19. While all other teams will play their matches in host nation Pakistan, India will play all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai after BCCI refused to allow the Indian team to travel to Pakistan.
Indian fans lashed out at the PCB over the viral video, insisting that the Pakistan board intentionally refused to hoist India’s flag at the stadium as India will not be playing their matches in the country. A PCB source, however, downplayed the controversy stating that PCB have raised flags of only the countries that will be playing in Pakistan.
“As you know, India is not coming to Pakistan to play its matches during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025; the National Stadium in Karachi, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium and the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore have hoisted flags of countries that are going to play at the said venues,” a PCB source was quoted as saying by IANS.
Indian flag missing from Karachi stadium before Champions Trophy #ChampionsTrophy2025 #INDvsPAK #PakistanCricket pic.twitter.com/31ieuMsIvk
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Traditionally, flags of all participating nations are hoisted at venues during an ICC tournament. However, the PCB source stated that the venues in Pakistan are hoisting the flags of only the teams that will be playing their matches in the country. He also clarified that PCB will not address the matter with an official statement, calling the controversy ‘unnecessary’.
“I don’t think PCB needs to even give an official statement on this. It’s clear that the controversy is made without facts and aims to damage host Pakistan’s image with fake news,” said the source.
“Different stadiums in Pakistan are going to host different teams during the Champions Trophy matches. And they’re hoisting their flags to welcome them,” he added.
India to take on Pakistan in Dubai on February 23
India will open their campaign with a clash against Bangladesh at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on February 20 before taking on arch-rivals Pakistan at the same venue on Sunday, February 23. It will be the first time the arch-rivals will lock horns with each other since their meeting in the T20 World Cup 2024 in New York last year.
India lost to Pakistan in the last meeting between the two teams in the tournament in the final of the last edition of the Champions Trophy in 2017. The Indian team has already reached Dubai and has begun training ahead of the start of their campaign in the tournament and will be hoping to start with a win against Bangladesh on Thursday.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued a clarification after a video went viral which showed flags of all teams participating in the Champions Trophy 2025 except India, hoisted at the National Stadium in Karachi. PCB has issued a clarification after the video sparked a controversy. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
