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India Gets Special Treatment? Former Cricketers Slam ICC for ‘Unfair’ Advantage in Champions Trophy

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The Champions Trophy 2025 has sparked a fresh debate as former England cricketers Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain believe India has a clear advantage over other teams. Since the Indian team is playing all their matches in Dubai while the remaining squads travel across Pakistan, they feel this gives Rohit Sharma and his team an edge over others.

Due to political reasons, India did not get clearance to travel to Pakistan. As a result, the ICC adopted a hybrid model, keeping all of India’s matches in Dubai while the other teams play in different cities of Pakistan. This means whichever team faces India will have to fly to Dubai, while India remains in one place, without the stress of constant travel.

Michael Atherton on India’s Advantage

Michael Atherton believes that staying in one city and playing in familiar conditions gives India a major advantage. While speaking on Sky Sports, he mentioned that India not only avoids traveling between venues but also benefits from knowing the pitch well. He added that since their semifinal and final (if they qualify) will also be in Dubai, they will be better prepared than any other team.

He called this an “undeniable advantage” and explained that India’s team selection was based entirely on Dubai’s conditions, making their squad more suited for the tournament than the traveling teams.

Nasser Hussain Supports Atherton’s View

Nasser Hussain also agreed with Atherton’s thoughts. He pointed out that by the time India reaches the knockout stages, they will be more familiar with the conditions than their opponents. The team facing them in the semifinal from Group B would not have played a single Champions Trophy match in Dubai, making things tougher for them.

Hussain also highlighted how India’s squad selection was designed for Dubai’s conditions. Many questioned why the team picked five spinners, but their match against Pakistan proved it was a smart decision. Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja took five wickets combined, showing the importance of spin in Dubai.

He further compared it with other teams, mentioning that England has only one spinner, while Pakistan also lacks spin options. Other teams have to keep adjusting their XIs based on different conditions in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, while India plays all matches on the same ground.

Despite the concerns, Hussain admitted that the ICC had no other choice. Since India refused to travel to Pakistan, moving their matches to Dubai was the only possible solution. Without India vs. Pakistan, the tournament would have lost a major attraction. However, this decision has certainly given India a unique advantage over the other teams.

Story First Published at www.probatsman.com on 25 February 2025

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