Categories: Cricket

Champions Trophy 2025: Fan Exposes Stadium Woes After Pakistan’s Rs 561 Crore Renovation

Champions Trophy 2025: Ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025, the Pakistan Cricket Board spent a lot of money to renovate three stadiums in Lahore, Karachi, and Rawalpindi. The cost went up by over five billion rupees (around USD 20.4 million).

Initially, the renovation was estimated to cost 12.3 billion Pakistani rupees (around Rs 383 crore), but the final cost ended up being 18 billion rupees (around Rs 561 crore). However, rain at the Rawalpindi and Lahore venues led to match cancellations.

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The match between Australia and South Africa on February 25, and Pakistan vs Bangladesh on February 27 (both in Rawalpindi) were abandoned without even the toss happening due to bad weather. Similarly, the Afghanistan vs Australia match on February 28 in Lahore was also called off.

Concerns Raised Over Stadium Conditions Despite Heavy Renovation Costs

A Pakistan fan shared a video showing leaking roofs and a flooded ground, suggesting that the stadiums didn’t appear to have been properly renovated.

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Despite spending 1,800 crore rupees (initial budget: 1,230 crore) on stadium renovations for the Champions Trophy 2025, the poor condition of the venues raised concerns.

Watch the video:

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Meanwhile, a senior Pakistan government official stated that he would ask Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to bring up the matter of the country’s cricket team’s disappointing performance in the Champions Trophy in Parliament and the Federal Cabinet.

“The (Pakistan) Cricket Board is an independent institution. They can do as they please, which they have. And what they’ve done, I will request the Prime Minister to discuss the matter in the Cabinet and Parliament,” said Rana Sanaullah, the advisor to the PM on Political and Public Affairs, during an interview with Geo TV channel.

Pakistan’s Disappointing Campaign in the Champions Trophy 2025

Hosts Pakistan’s campaign in the prestigious tournament ended early with heavy defeats to New Zealand (by 60 runs) and India (by six wickets). Their final group match against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi was abandoned without any play due to continuous rain.

Sanaullah, a former federal and provincial minister and a senior member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N) party, emphasized that the caretaker government before last year’s general elections had completely separated the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) from the Federal Government’s control.

“The problem is we have been facing ups and downs in cricket and changes in the Board for the past decade now,” said Sanaullah, while also highlighting the dismal condition of the sport at the club, university, and district level.

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Unnati Madan

Unnati is a passionate cricket writer with a deep love and understanding of the game. As a female cricket writer, she brings a unique perspective to the sport, having had to overcome various challenges to pursue her passion for cricket. Growing up, Unnati developed a love for cricket by watching matches with her family. She was always fascinated by the way the game was played, and would often spend hours reading about cricket, analyzing matches, and learning more about the sport. However, as a female in a male-dominated industry, she faced numerous obstacles to pursue her passion for cricket writing. Despite this, Unnati persevered and became an accomplished writer in the field. Unnati’s writing style is engaging and insightful, with a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of the nuances of the game. Her articles are known for their depth of analysis, and she is often sought after for her strong opinions on the sport. Unnati has a unique ability to break down complex ideas and make them accessible to a wide audience, which has helped her build a large following of readers.