Asia Cup 2023: Sri Lanka May Host The Event Amid The Venue Controversy Between India And Pakistan: After months of back-and-forth between the PCB and the BCCI over the Asia Cup 2023 hosting rights, Sri Lanka has emerged as the favourite to host the future continental cup.
The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Jay Shah has rushed to Bahrain following an emergency meeting convened by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi to decide the fate of the Asia Cup 2023. It should be mentioned that Pakistan presently has the hosting rights for the 2023 Asia Cup.
The Asia Cup 2023, which is expected to take place from September 2nd to September 17th, has been in the news recently owing to a venue dispute in which India declined to travel to Pakistan due to security and political concerns. The BCCI requested a neutral location for the three matches.
In response, PCB proposed a hybrid approach for India, which appears to have been rejected in the most recent development. As a result, Pakistan may lose the opportunity to host the Asia Cup in 2023.
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Sri Lanka May Host the Asia Cup 2023
As per the report of Indian Express, The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has decided to relocate the upcoming 2023 Asia Cup from Pakistan to Sri Lanka. The decision to move the tournament away from its original host country was always on the cards since BCCI secretary Jay Shah stated that the Indian squad would not cross the border.
A final decision on the tournament’s location is likely by the end of this month. However, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan supporting the island nation’s bid to host the event. Pakistan’s participation in the tournament is currently unknown, with speculations stating that the country may boycott the event.
While the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) continues to express interest in maintaining the event in Pakistan. While the BCCI has received backing from other ACC member nations, the decision appears to be a formality at the present.
After the BCCI refused to go to Pakistan for the event due to a lack of government approval, the PCB offered a hybrid approach for hosting the Asia Cup, with India’s matches taking place solely in Dubai.
Furthermore, because September is peak summer in the United Arab Emirates, the other boards were hesitant to play in the Gulf region a month before the 50-over World Cup.
The circumstances for the players were incredibly difficult as Dubai hosted the 2018 Asia Cup in September. It was during this competition that Hardik Pandya suffered a back injury, and with the World Cup slated to begin in the first week of October, and countries eager to utilise the Asia Cup as a form of warm-up, the UAE has been ruled out entirely.
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka Cricket Board Showed Support For BCCI
Following India’s refusal to participate in the tournament, the cricket boards of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have allegedly thrown their support to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in order to shift the major continental rivalry away from Pakistan. Pakistan was granted the Asia Cup 2023, and it looks like the competition is on its way out of the country.
According to reports, both the cricket boards of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have expressed interest in hosting the tournament this year, which would fulfill the BCCI’s requirement of neutral location
If the event is moved out of Pakistan and the Men in Green refuse to participate, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) is eager to discuss replacing Pakistan with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
After careful consideration of the financial damages that the broadcasters will have to face if Pakistan withdraws from the tournament, ACC president Jay Shah told them that they will be adequately paid in the future in a series including India.
Meanwhile, rumors suggest that Pakistan will only visit India for the ODI World Cup provided the BCCI guarantees that the team will visit Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy.
