The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to cancel the opening ceremony for the Champions Trophy which begins in Lahore on February 19.
As a fallout, all traditional pre-tournament events, including the captains’ meeting featuring all eight teams and the official photoshoot, have also been cancelled.
Officially, the PCB blamed the cancellation on late arrivals of Australia and England in Pakistan and the unavailability of all captains in the lead-up to the tournament.
It was also made clear to the PCB that neither Rohit Sharma nor the Indian team would travel to Pakistan
for the inauguration, which made it unfeasible to host it. India will be playing all their matches in Dubai, including the big-ticket fixture against Pakistan.
The PCB had planned to host the event on February 16/17 and had informed the ICC accordingly, sources said.
The Telegraph had reported on January 16 that uncertainty over Team India’s visit to Pakistan was posing a roadblock to the planned launch of the event.
The PCB clarified on Thursday that inaugural functions were not mandatory and there was no official communication in this regard.
England will arrive in Lahore on February 18, while Australia will land a day later following short breaks after the end of their series in India and Sri Lanka, respectively.
