BCCI, Players and Coach Respond to India’s Champions Trophy Venue Criticism

India’s journey to the Champions Trophy 2025 final has led to some chatter, or heated debate even if that’s how you’d like to call it. Critics are suggesting the team had an advantage by playing all matches at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The venue’s spin-friendly conditions led to concerns about favoritism, but BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla dismissed these claims.

Shukla, attending the second semifinal in Lahore, addressed a Pakistani journalist’s question about the issue. He clarified that the scheduling decision was made during an ICC meeting, where it was agreed that India-centric matches would be held in Dubai. He emphasized that India’s success comes from performance, not pitch conditions.

“When this decision was made during the ICC meeting, it was agreed that India-centric matches would be played in Dubai, while the remaining games would also take place in Dubai. So, it’s not about fair or unfair. The Indian cricket team does not depend on pitches to win matches. There are different types of pitches even within Dubai. India plays on performance—our players rely on their skills, not the conditions,” Shukla stated.

Discussion on India-Pakistan Bilateral Series

Shukla was also asked about the possibility of India and Pakistan resuming bilateral cricket at a neutral venue. He reiterated that the decision rests with the Indian government and that the BCCI maintains its stance that bilateral matches should be hosted in either India or Pakistan, not elsewhere.

“As far as bilateral cricket between India and Pakistan is concerned, the decision is in the hands of the government. Whatever the Indian government decides, we will follow. Moreover, it is BCCI’s consistent policy that bilateral matches should take place either in India or Pakistan, not at a neutral venue. I assume the PCB follows a similar approach,” he said.

The two teams last faced off in a bilateral ODI series in 2012-13. Since then, they have only met in multinational tournaments. Pakistan visited India for the 2023 ODI World Cup, while India’s last tour to Pakistan was in 2008 for the Asia Cup.

Players React to Advantage Claims

Indian players have also weighed in on the debate. Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir dismissed the suggestion that playing at a single venue gave the team an unfair edge. However, pacer Mohammed Shami had a different view. He acknowledged that staying in one location had helped India adapt to the conditions.

“It has definitely helped us because we know the conditions and the behaviour of the pitch. It is a plus point that you are playing all the matches at one venue. The main thing is to gauge the conditions and know how the pitch behaves because you are playing at one venue and you can get to know it well,” Shami said after India’s semifinal win over Australia in Dubai.

Head Coach Speaks Up

India head coach Gautam Gambhir pushed back against the idea that his team had any unfair advantage. He argued that Dubai is as neutral for India as it is for any other team.

“I know, there’s a lot of debate about the undue advantage. But what is an undue advantage? First of all, this is as much of a neutral venue for us as it is for any other team. I don’t remember which tournament we played in this stadium last time,” Gambhir told reporters.

“We haven’t practiced here even for a day. We practiced in the ICC Academy. The conditions there and here are 180 degrees different. Some people are just perpetual cribbers. So, I feel we didn’t have any undue advantage,” he added.

India is readying itself for the finals against New Zealand on Sunday March 9, who on Wednesday beat South Africa.