CHENNAI: Ah, yes. It's that time of the decade when the International Cricket Council's (ICC) least favoured event is round the corner. It's still a money-spinner but the Champions Trophy has primarily been ridden with an inferiority complex for the majority of its existence. What is it, exactly? When it began, the ICC had it in developing cricketing communities around the world with the hope of getting new fans onside (the 1998 edition, for instance, was staged in Bangladesh without the host nation fielding a team).
What began as a snappy fast-food event to identify the best cricket team among the elite — knockout matches, like cricket's answer to tennis, in a couple of venues in fewer than 10 days once every two years — has grown into a product designed for TV, having at least one India v. Pakistan match with a solid undercard thrown in in the form of England v. Australia (both those matches are part of the upcoming event in Dubai and Pakistan).
While there will be excitement in Pakistan as they gear up to host their first ICC event this side of 2000 (the 1996 World Cup was their last), the feeling of the event being the runt of the ICC litter comes from the way the body itself has treated this event. Consider this — 2. 2. 2. 2. 3. 4. 4. 8. This is not some modern Fibonacci series but rather the gap between the Champions Trophy since the first in 1998. The last one was held in England in 2017 and there has been nothing since. Nada.
When the 2025 event was rubber-stamped into existence in 2021, teams didn't bother to find out about the qualification pathway. Suddenly, at the 2023 World Cup, several underperforming teams woke up to the reality that the top seven teams in the league stage plus Pakistan would qualify. In the bowels of the Narendra Modi Stadium in November, just after a defeat to Australia, it was amusing to see English reporters ask Jos Buttler if he knew about whether his side would struggle to make the Champions Trophy (several teams were googling to find out the pathway).
If that was 2023, 2024 brought with it political intrigue, geopolitics, back-channel lobbying and brinkmanship. In the end, the Board of Control for Cricket in India got their way — spoiler alert: they always get their way — so they will play their matches (including the semifinals and, if they advance that far, the final) in Dubai.
However, the Champions Trophy has the potential to be an exciting bite-sized event in a sea of bloated at least month-long assignments. By its very nature, only the very best are allowed entry and when the very best play each other, matches can be good. And unlike at the World Cup where teams can lose two or three games and still stand a chance, this tournament is where you either go big or go home.
There's another reason to be optimistic of this particular edition; multiple generations of Pakistan fans haven't experienced the thrill of an ICC event in their backyard. They have hosted international bilateral cricket as well as a relatively successful T20 league over the last 10 years but an ICC event hits different. Different international teams bringing their own colour and culture. Matches on back-to-back days. A bigger context in play.
All of this is before getting into the actual cricket itself. India's Golden Generation didn't deliver global gold in 2023 but winning an ICC event in back-to-back years could be perfect consolation. Can this event do enough to show the world there's a time and place for cricket's one-time golden goose — ODIs — or will it hasten its departure? Afghanistan have taken several baby steps over the last few years. Can they now take an adult step by doing something special? South Africa's only men's ICC title came in 1998, ironically when it was a knockout-only event. Can the 2025 batch emulate their predecessors?
What version of Pakistan will turn up in front of their own fans?
Lest people have forgotten, they are also the defending champions.
