Pakistan To Welcome Indians! Grants Journalists Visas To Cover Champions Trophy

Pakistan makes a bold move to welcome Indians [Source: @iamAhmadhaseeb/X.com]

In a significant development ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Pakistan has granted visas to all the Indian journalists who had applied for visas to report on the tournament. This action is a step towards sports diplomacy between the two countries.

The 2025 Champions Trophy gets underway, with Pakistan and New Zealand set to fight it out in the tournament curtain-raiser on February 19 at the National Stadium in Karachi.

At the same time, Pakistan is hosting an ICC event after over two decades; thus, the preparations are full-fledged. They renovated the stadiums and other facilities to match ICC's standards.

However, the tournament was switched to a hybrid model since India refused to travel, citing security reasons.

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Pakistan confirms entry of Indian journalists

While the Indian cricket team refused to travel to Pakistan and landed in Dubai instead, the journalists are apparently not following the same path. 

Cricket Pakistan's sources have claimed that seven Indian journalists had sought visas to cover the tournament, and all of their applications have been granted, with none being rejected.

The decision is regarded as a positive indication of cooperation between Pakistan and India, particularly in the cricketing world, where the two countries have a long and fierce rivalry.

Significantly, the highly anticipated clash between long-standing rivals Pakistan and India will be played on February 23 in Dubai and has taken humongous attention from both countries.

Indian players’ wives likely to stay in Dubai 

In a major development, BCCI has reportedly allowed Indian cricketers to have their families accompany them for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy in Dubai. 

This is subject to some conditions, as BCCI had issued new policies that limited family travel during short tournaments such as the Champions Trophy. 

As per the new guidelines issued by the BCCI, the families of the players will be permitted to view a single match within the tournament.

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