Here’s why Asia Cup is likely to be shifted from Pakistan
During the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) board meeting held in February 2023, the PCB announced that it will not travel to India to play the 2023 World Cup if team India does not come to Pakistan to play the Asia Cup.
Hyderabad: A few days ago, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi said that PCB could lose around USD 3 million in revenues if the country backs off from the Asia Cup. He threatened to boycott Asia Cup if the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) shifts the venue to another county.
It has been Pakistan’s dream to host the tournament again after 15 years as it last hosted the tournament in 2008. After the 2009 attacks on the Sri Lankan team, cricket teams have been reluctant to play cricket in Pakistan due to security reasons.
It all started in 2022 when the ACC announced Pakistan as the host of the 2023 Asia Cup. The Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah responded immediately saying that he will request ACC to hold the tournament at a neutral venue citing safety and security issues.
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To address the issue, Najam Sethi proposed a hybrid model, where India will play its matches at an offshore venue and the remaining matches will be held in Pakistan. He made it clear to the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) that Pakistan will play the Asia Cup only if the former accepts the hybrid model for hosting the tournament
During the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) board meeting held in February 2023, the PCB announced that it will not travel to India to play the 2023 World Cup if team India does not come to Pakistan to play the Asia Cup.
The BCCI on the other hand clarified that the decision whether to play Pakistan or not lies with the government of India and not with them. The BCCI also confirmed they need clearance from the government to play tournaments in any country.
India’s strong stance against Pakistan had left many former Pakistani crickets frustrated. Cricketers like Waqar Yonis, Shahid Afridi and Javed Miandad have openly criticised BCCI on its stand on Asia Cup.
Former Pakistani middle-order batsman Javed Miand slammed BCCI several times. In February, he took a dig at India saying that India can go to hell if it doesn’t want to come to Pakistan. In a podcast held by Pakistani podcaster Nadir Ali, Miandad speaking about the Asia Cup row said “Forget security, we believe that agar maut aani hai toh aani hai. Zindagi aur maut toh allah ke haath mein hai.”
While India last visited Pakistan in 2008 to play the Asia Cup, the Pakistan team last visited India in 2016 to play the ICC T20 World Cup.
If Pakistan pulls off from Asia Cup, it would be a huge disappointment for fans from both countries. Asia cup is set to be held in September, a month before the start of the 2023 world cup that is scheduled to take place in India from October 2023.
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