Amidst the controversy revolving around the absence of the Indian Flag at the Lahore and Karachi Stadium ahead of the Champions Trophy, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) seemed to realize their mistake as the Indian flag was seen waving high along with the other country’s flags this morning on 19 February.
Earlier this week, a video went viral on social media that shocked the fans when the Indian flag could not be seen among other flags at the Lahore and Karachi Stadiums. The social media platforms were flooded with reactions as the fans criticized PCB and accused them of cheap behaviour.
No Indian flag in #Karachi:
only the Indian team faced security issues in #Pakistan & refused to play Champions Trophy matches in Pakistan, the PCB removed the #India flag from the Karachi stadium while keeping the flags of the other guest playing nations.#ChampionsTrophy2025 pic.twitter.com/QaZMqglAu1— shahinur (@shahinu_r) February 17, 2025
The actual reason for the absence is unknown however, fans speculated the possibilities, accusing them of not hoisting the flag ahead of the tournament because the team did not agree to play in Pakistan. As per the deal between ICC, BCCI and PCB, India and Pakistan will not play in the tournament hosted in the two countries.
PCB source was quoted by IANS saying, “As you know, India is not coming to Pakistan to play its matches during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025; the National Stadium in Karachi, Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, and the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore have hoisted flags of countries that are going to play at the said venues,”
Whatever the reason may be, they appeared to rectify the situation by placing the Indian flag on the eve of the tournament opener. A famous content creator, Farid Khan shared a photo on his Twitter account which shows all the flags being hoisted. The post went viral amidst the controversy.
India's flag raised at the National Stadium in Karachi. What a moment 🇵🇰🇮🇳♥️♥️
We have big hearts, we don't do cheap acts. All 7 Indian journalists granted Pakistan visas too 🤗 #ChampionsTrophy2025 pic.twitter.com/zWfIMCaVex
— Farid Khan (@_FaridKhan) February 18, 2025
The tournament begins on 19 February, at 2:30 pm IST between Pakistan and New Zealand. The finals are set to take place on 9 March. All matches of team India will be played in Dubai, meanwhile, other matches will be held in Pakistan across three venues.
Also Read: Champions Trophy 2025: BCCI’s New Guidelines For Family Presence
