Ninth edition of 27-year-old Champions Trophy begins Wednesday

The ICC Champions Trophy is set begin. The eight teams participating in the tournament will be fighting on the field from Wednesday (February 19) with excitement and heat. The teams will be divided into two groups and will enter the cricket battle for the title for more than two weeks.

In Group ‘A’, Bangladesh’s opponents are India, Pakistan and New Zealand. In Group ‘B’, Australia, Afghanistan, South Africa and England are in Group ‘B’. The curtain will be raised on the Champions Trophy with the match between hosts Pakistan and New Zealand at the National Stadium in Karachi. A day later, i.e. on February 20, Bangladesh’s mission will begin with a match against India. The final of the tournament will be on March 9.

The idea of ​​the Champions Trophy cricket tournament first came to the mind of the then ICC president Jagmohan Dalmiya. The ICC planned to organize this tournament to raise funds for the development of cricket in countries that do not play Tests. The tournament was first held in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, for the first time in 1998, under the name of the ICC Knock-Out Trophy. South Africa won the title by defeating West Indies by 4 wickets in the tournament held at the National Stadium. The current champion team is Pakistan. The ICC-run men's Champions Trophy is actually an international one-day cricket tournament.

In terms of prestige, this tournament is after the ODI World Cup. At one time, the tournament was also called the Mini World Cup. In 2002, the tournament was renamed the ICC Champions Trophy. Full ICC member countries started getting priority as the host countries of this tournament. Although the number of teams participating in the Champions Trophy has been increasing in the past, it has now been reduced to 8 teams. Since 2009, only the 8 teams that were at the top of the ICC rankings six months before the tournament are getting the opportunity to play. The ICC had considered canceling the tournament in 2013 and 2017. Later, the world cricket governing body withdrew from that idea. Due to the outbreak of the coronavirus in 2021, the Champions Trophy could not be organized. It is back this year.

Initially, this tournament was organized every two years. But in 2008, the tournament was not held in Pakistan due to security reasons. A year later, the Champions Trophy was held in South Africa. Since then, the tournament has been organized every four years like the World Cup. However, the eighth edition of the Champions Trophy was last held in England and Wales in 2017.

There were also concerns about hosting the ninth edition of the tournament after 7 years. The main reason was the bilateral hostile relations between the two arch-rivals India and Pakistan. This has not made the water less muddy. In the end, Pakistan is organizing the tournament in the 'hybrid model'. Under this model, the Indian cricket team will not go to Pakistan to play. Their matches will be played in the United Arab Emirates. Even if India reaches the final, they will play in the Emirates. If India and Pakistan make it to the final, the Pakistanis will have to go to the Emirates to play despite being the hosts. Even then, Pakistan is quite excited about the tournament.
Because they have been hosting an ICC tournament for 29 years.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has not lacked anything. Starting from stadium renovation, they have made changes to all their infrastructure. The host country is ready to organize the tournament successfully.

Many are watching the hosts Pakistan and India in the final of this year's Champions Trophy. Since both are subcontinental countries, the field, conditions, and audience are all familiar to them. No one knows better than them how to succeed in the field. Cricket experts are also putting the two countries ahead in terms of past history, strength, and ability. Many are also seeing New Zealand as the title-winning team. Before the Champions Trophy, the team became the undefeated champion in the tri-nation series on Pakistani soil. The team is quite balanced and a team capable of becoming champions. England, South Africa, and Australia can also do well. They have recently played several matches on the subcontinental field and have adapted to the conditions. They can also win by using their experience. Australia and India have won the tournament twice each. Then there are the Bangladesh and Afghanistan teams in the discussion. They can disappoint the team at the top of the rankings. Overall, the cricket world is waiting to see the exciting battle of the top 8 teams in the ICC ODI rankings.