On Monday, September 30, the BCCI Vice-President, spoke to the press about the Indian government making the final decision on whether the Men in Blue visit Pakistan to play the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The comments from the Indian politician came on the sidelines of the fourth day’s play in the second Test match between India and Bangladesh at the Green Park in Kanpur, which has been severely impacted by rain and wet outfield during its first three days.
Notably, Rajeev Shukla was in the stands at the Green Park, soaking in the great atmosphere at the cricket on the Monday afternoon. The Indian cricket team delivered the goods on the field, dominating Bangladesh for the majority of the day as they bowled them out for 233 runs in the first innings before responding with 285/9 declared within 35 overs, to pick up two crucial second innings wickets before the close of play on day four.
We always seek permission from the Indian government: BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla
When the reporters in Kanpur quizzed Rajeev Shukla about the matter of India potentially travelling to Pakistan to take part in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, slated to happen from February 19 to March 9, he responded, ‘No decision has been taken on it. But our policy is that for international tours, we always seek permission from the government. It’s up to the government to decide whether or not our team should go to any country. Whatever the government will decide, we will abide by that.’
Moreover, the BCCI official also responded to the criticism received by the and the UPCA for play not happening at the Green Park in Kanpur on day two and three despite little to no rain. He was quoted as saying, ‘Criticism is one thing we are used to. I was criticised when the match was given to Kanpur and when this (poor drainage) happened, I was again criticised. It was the first time in 80 years that because of rain, we couldn’t host the match for two days.’
‘The rotation policy is enforced every year. Kanpur is one of the country’s premier Test venues. This Test match was given as per the rotation policy. There’s an appetite in smaller cities and venues to watch the game. The turnout in bigger cities is low because they get a lot of matches. Tier B cities enjoy Test matches,’ Rajeev Shukla, who is also a member of the Indian National Congress (INC) concluded on the matter.
