Champions Trophy: Lahore likely to host Indo-Pak match next March

New Delhi: In another blockbuster meeting, India and Pakistan are scheduled to face off in next year's Champions Trophy in Lahore as per the draft of the tournament, according to a report.
India are yet to decide on travelling to Pakistan due to the strained relations between the two countries. In last year's Asia Cup, the Indian government did not allow the team to travel to Pakistan and their matches in the tournament were played at a neutral venue in Sri Lanka.

According to a Cricbuzz report, the two neighbours will take on each other in March next year in the last league match of the eight-team competition. The tournament is likely to be played between February 19 to March 9. However, the final schedule is yet to be announced.

However, Pakistan travelled to India for the ODI World Cup, ending their 11-year-long hiatus.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has identified Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi as venues for the 20-day competition, with Lahore as the designated centre for the India games. As per the programme, there will be seven matches in Lahore, five in Rawalpindi and three in the port city of Karachi, the report added.

The opening match of the tournament is scheduled to be played in Karachi on February 19. Moreover, Karachi and Rawalpindi are set to host two semifinals.

According to the proposed plan, the final will be held on March 9 in Lahore, which will also host all India games and the semifinal if they qualify.

The report further said that neither the PCB nor the ICC is discussing a hybrid model, but there's a possibility of the situation changing at the last minute.