The Champions Trophy 2025, a 15-game tournament spanning 20 days, concluded at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium with India securing the victory. However, the event was slightly marred by concerns raised by Pakistan regarding the lack of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) representation at the trophy presentation, despite Pakistan being the host country.
Shoaib Akhtar expressed his surprise in a social media video, noting the absence of any PCB representative on the podium during the ceremony. He questioned why, as the host nation, Pakistan did not have anyone present to represent them on such a significant global stage. He found it incomprehensible that no PCB members were visible during the presentation.
Despite Pakistan being the host of the tournament, no elected PCB member was present at the Dubai stadium on Sunday. PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi did not attend the closing ceremony in Dubai. Instead, Sumair Ahmed, the tournament director for the Pakistan-hosted portion of the Champions Trophy, was sent as the PCB’s representative.
However, it has been clarified that established protocols dictated podium access was limited to elected board members or directors. Dignitaries present included Jay Shah, ICC Chair, Roger Binny and Devajit Saikia, representing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), and Roger Twose, a director from New Zealand Cricket.
It’s also important to note that Andre Russell, who served as the tournament director for the Dubai leg of the Champions Trophy, was similarly not invited to the podium. This reinforces that podium access was reserved for board officials and directors, not operational staff.
