India playing all their 2025 Champions Trophy matches in Dubai - unfair advantage or needless controversy?

Team India have made a rollicking start to their 2025 Champions Trophy campaign with back-to-back wins over Bangladesh and Pakistan in a space of four days. That, along with other results, have ensured the Men in Blue a spot in the semi-final next week even before playing their final Group stage game against New Zealand.

Yet, apart from hailing India's on-field dominance thus far, experts and fans have been critical of the side having a scheduling advantage over the other participating teams. Their refusal to travel to Pakistan in the build-up to the Champions Trophy led to a hybrid model being followed for the tournament.

While the rest of the sides play their matches around the three venues in Pakistan - Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, India have and will continue to play their games only in Dubai. Furthermore, the semi-final involving India will be played in Dubai and the final, should they qualify, will also take place at the same venue.

With Rohit Sharma's looking at their relentless best and being massive favorites to go all the way, discussions on 'Fair or Foul?' regarding India playing only in Dubai have dominated the headlines over the past few days.

Here, we address the various facets of India's unique scheduling to decide between a blatant unfair advantage and needless controversy meant to discredit the side's current and potential future dominance.

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What current and former players say

Jos Buttler took a subtle dig at India playing elsewhere to the rest of the teams [Credit: Getty]

Before we jump into the crux of the matter, let us look at some of the remarks from current and former players on India playing all their games in Dubai.

Two of England's former captains, Nasser Hussain and Micheal Atherton, had much to say about how India benefit massively from such a scheduling.

In a conversation on Sky Sports, Hussain said [via India Today]:

"It is an advantage. For the best team in the tournament to have that advantage...I saw a tweet the other day: Pakistan - host nation, India - home advantage. That sort of sums it up, really....They are [India] in one place. They are in one hotel. There is no travel. They are in one dressing room. They know the pitch. They picked for that pitch. When they selected, they were very smart. They probably knew what Dubai was going to be like."

Atherton echoed Hussain's sentiments, saying:

"About the advantage India have in playing in Dubai, only in Dubai, which seems to me to be a hard-to-quantify advantage but an undeniable advantage...They are playing at just one venue. They do not have to travel between venues or, you know, between countries as a lot of other teams have to do."

Even current England skipper Jos Buttler subtly took exception to India's unique scheduling before their clash against Afghanistan, saying:

"I think it's a unique tournament already, isn't it, with being hosted here with one team playing in a different place but that's not something I'm sort of worried too much about at the moment."

Keeping these comments in mind, let us break down the various intangible and tangible factors that could favor India and otherwise, thanks to their playing only in Dubai.

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The obvious advantages

India have seemingly conquered the Dubai pitch after the opening two games [Credit: Getty]

There are obvious logistical benefits from India playing only in Dubai as the other teams move around Pakistan and fly to Dubai to play India. Often discarded in sporting discussions, the impact of travel and the wear and tear stemming from it physically and mentally cannot be overstated.

Flashback to when the NBA Playoffs were played in the Orlando bubble in 2020 due to the COVID-19 situation. Several former players continue to dismiss the LA Lakers winning the title because of the circumstances - lack of travel, the comforts of the same hotel, and a fixed daily routine, among others.

While all teams equally benefitted from that setup, in this case, only India enjoy these advantages. The other teams are on the move constantly from one city in Pakistan to the other, which could occasionally turn off their daily routines and other activities.

Coming to the cricketing side of things, ardent followers of the game understand the role of the pitches in the eventual outcome of the contest. Lest we forget, India have been branded 'unlucky' by some because pitches changed from innings to innings in their 2019 ODI World Cup semifinal and 2023 final defeats.

With that in mind, the plight of the other teams is understandable. They seemingly play an away game on each occasion with alien conditions to encounter, while India are playing at home away from home going forward, having already played twice in Dubai.

It also doesn't help matters that Rohit Sharma's men can expect similar pitches in Dubai and play an already settled playing XI with games under their belt on these conditions. Meanwhile, other teams are left with some amount of guesswork in nailing down their final XI to attain the ideal balance for varying conditions on a match-to-match basis.

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Is the advantage 'Unfair'?

India have been dominating ODI cricket across conditions for several years [Credit: Getty]

Anytime one team is encountered with different and unquestionably more favorable circumstances than the others, they are obviously in an advantageous situation. Yet, how much is too much and are India gaining an unfair advantage, with 'Unfair' being the operative word?

Considering the intangible nature of the benefit, the term 'Unfair' becomes subjective and left to one's perception. However, those discrediting India's dominance because of them playing only in Dubai must ask themselves this - Had they lost both outings at the same venue, would they have said 'India are at a disadvantage because they have to play in conditions that suit their side'?

Let's also look deeper into the myth of conditions in Dubai being vastly different to those in the three venues in Pakistan for this Champions Trophy. The average scores being much higher in Pakistan compared to Dubai has forced many to conclude that the latter favors spinners more and is harder for batting. This has helped push the narrative on India gaining big by playing only in Dubai.

Yet, a closer look with more context confirms that such inferences are far from the truth, even if the eye test diverts us to think otherwise.

India have played Bangladesh and Pakistan in Dubai and in both matches, they bowled first. It is not rocket science to state that India's two opponents are among the weaker batting units in 50-over cricket, thanks to their conservative approach.

Bangladesh scored 228, while Pakistan fared slightly better by scoring 241. The two teams did no better in their other match against New Zealand in Karachi and Rawalpindi.

Even in a tall run-chase of 321, Pakistan were bundled out for 260 in Karachi, while Bangladesh scored only 236 against New Zealand in Rawalpindi.

Meanwhile, India, just to assure victory, batted slower than usual to overhaul Bangladesh's 228 in the 47th over. The victory over Pakistan saw the Men in Blue chase down 242 in the 43rd over - evidence that their 50-over total would have been almost identical to what the other sides are scoring at the venues in Pakistan.

India's playing XI was the same even in the three-match ODI series at home against England before the Champions Trophy. Thus, the noise about the Dubai conditions helping India finalize their squad and eventual 11 is non-factual.

The India-Bangladesh game was played on equal grounds as it was both teams' first in Dubai in this tournament. India's next outing was against Pakistan, whose second home, and often even first, for years was Dubai.

Whatever advantage India have will be in their next encounter against New Zealand, who will be playing in Dubai for the first time as the Men in Blue play their third consecutive. However, both teams have already qualified for the semi-final, and playing once in Dubai will only serve the Kiwis well, should the two teams meet again in the final.

It is only the two semi-finalists from Group B that may be at a decided disadvantage in a matchup against India in the semifinal or final. However, it is also worth looking at India's dominant run in terms of consistency in ICC events over the last decade and conceding that the side's success in ODIs has hardly hinged on the familiarity of pitches - be it Delhi, Dubai, or Durban.

Finally, the pitch and condition variances between Pakistan and Dubai aren't as drastic as those between India and South Africa.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, there is no denying that 'A Known devil is better than an unknown angel' and India certainly enjoys the benefits from that in the ongoing Champions Trophy. Yet, while the slight benefits are there to be seen, the accusation of India gaining an unfair advantage has some 'crying wolf' to it.

A level playing field, especially in an ICC tournament, should be non-negotiable to ensure such grey area discussions do not tarnish the sport's reputation and undercut the performances of the eventual winners, should they have gained an intangible amount of unearned advantage.

Verdict: Yes, India hold an undeniable advantage, thanks to the scheduling. Yet, it has been blown out of proportion as a possible way to ultimately discredit the side's sustained dominance.