Financial repercussions likely as ICC misses CT25 contractual deadline

As the Champions Trophy controversy nears its conclusion, with a final decision expected in the next two days, new dimensions are unfolding. Notably, the International Cricket Council (ICC) may have missed the contractual deadline to release the tournament's fixtures and schedule, which it is required to provide to all its stakeholders at least 90 days before the event.

That deadline has passed, leaving many of its stakeholders badly affected, chiefly Disney Star or merged Jio Star, the ICC's media partners and the biggest bankrollers of global cricket. The broadcaster's inability to fully exploit the tournament commercially is a significant and hitherto unknown facet of the entire Champions Trophy saga. The ICC would not comment on matters that are commercial but time is running out for its business partners, stakeholders as well as the hosts. There may be some commercial impact for this delay.

In a separate yet relevant development, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the designated hosts, has taken serious exception to the prolonged delay in resolving the crisis. Cricbuzz understands that a senior PCB official is said to have contacted ICC CEO Geoff Allardice to express displeasure over the ongoing uncertainty. This, it can be confirmed, is independent of the questions the PCB had sent to the ICC after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said the Men in Blue would not travel to Pakistan.

It is being reported, meanwhile, that the broadcaster opposes any proposal to decouple India and Pakistan into separate groups, which would allow Pakistan to play all its league fixtures at home. Having India and Pakistan in the same group would require the hosts to travel to another country for their match against India under the hybrid arrangement, a plan the ICC is most likely to adopt during its November 29 meeting.

There may be some truth to these points, as they highlight the context of the 50-over format, which has been steadily and rapidly losing its appeal to the shorter T20 version. Worldwide debates have been questioning the relevance of ODIs altogether. The loudest argument in favour of the 50-over format remains the quadrennial World Cup, which is a huge commercial success, with the India-Pakistan clash being its blue riband fixture.

While the World Cup itself features 10 teams, a Champions Trophy with just two teams less, would make little sense without an India-Pakistan match, particularly when there are efforts to pump oxygen into the ODI format. It is being contended that if the ICC aims to revive the 50-over Champions Trophy - last played in 2017 - an India-Pakistan clash would be its most significant booster, a potential elixir for its success.

Notably, the ICC had previously rejected proposals to convert the Champions Trophy to a Twenty20 format. Given the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the tournament's draw and fixtures, there is a growing debate over whether a shorter format might have been more logistically, operationally, and commercially viable.

It is now the biggest challenge for the ICC to convince a defiant Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to embrace the hybrid model, which is expected to be overwhelmingly backed at the ICC board meeting on Friday. The PCB's rigid stance of not accepting it means the Champions Trophy will have implications since India is refusing to travel to the country. This could force the ICC to consider relocating the tournament, raising the possibility of Pakistan boycotting the event altogether.

What, then, are the consequences? It is a fact that in the global cricket ecosystem, a Champions Trophy without Pakistan would lose some of its lustre, but without India, it would be virtually worthless, close to zero value - a non-starter. Besides, Pakistan's problem is that its biggest asset is the value that it brings to a tournament by playing India. The underlying factor is that commerce drives the system and there is neglible commerce without India.

As previously reported by Cricbuzz, there are three potential scenarios that can emerge from the current impasse:

Scenario 1: ICC decides on the hybrid model and Pakistan reluctantly accepts it.

Scenario 2: Pakistan rejects and boycotts it and the competition is relocated to another country, UAE or South Africa.

Scenario 3: The tournament is cancelled or indefinitely postponed (least likely, as it is not in any party's interest).

There will be some serious and inevitable fallouts to any of these scenarios being adopted. Pakistan may threaten to boycott events in India which will be hosting five global/continental championships in the current cycle ending in 2031. They are:

2025: Women's ODI World Cup

2025: Men's Asia Cup

2026: Men's T20 World Cup (with Sri Lanka)

2029: Men's Champions Trophy

2031: ODI World Cup (with Bangladesh).

But then there are consequences for boycotting a global event as well.