Due to logistical issues and the intense heat in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have rejected the hybrid format proposed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for the Asia Cup in 2023.
The hybrid concept said that India would play all of its games in the UAE and the remaining matches would take place in Pakistan in September of this year.
“We have written to the ACC to say that we are against the hybrid model,” Mohan de Silva, the SLC secretary, told ESPNcricinfo. “But beyond that, no final decision has been reached. It’s very hot in the UAE at that time of year.”
SLC offers to play in Sri Lanka
SLC is also in favor of hosting the competition in Sri Lanka while Pakistan keeps the hosting rights. This would be similar to what occurred the previous year, when Sri Lanka held the tournament in the United Arab Emirates because of political and economic unrest there.
“If the offer is there to play the tournament in Sri Lanka, we will take it. Pakistan will be the official hosts,” Mohan de Silva said.
But the PCB is yet adamant on their stand to play the tournament in Pakistan.
“The PCB presented a hybrid model that resolves issues of logistics and travel and production,” a PCB official told ESPNcricinfo. “The board reiterated its position that we won’t play the Asia Cup if the Pakistan plus neutral venue model is rejected.”
India and Pakistan, two teams with one of the greatest sporting rivalries, have not played against each other on home soil since 2012. Instead, their matches are limited to multinational tournaments held on neutral grounds.
The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Management Committee, Najam Sethi, has called for a rational approach to tackle the crisis that threatens the successful hosting of the Asia Cup and Pakistan’s participation in the ODI World Cup this year. He made these comments during the National Assembly Standing Committee on Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) meeting.
Sethi revealed that the Pakistan team’s chances of traveling to India for the ODI World Cup are slim, as the two countries have not played against each other on each other’s soil in recent years. Therefore, the ongoing crisis may cause difficulty in Pakistan’s participation in international cricket events.
“In case of India’s refusal to travel to Pakistan to compete in the Asia Cup, chances are there that the Pakistan government would not allow the Men in Green to cross the borders for their World Cup participation. In that case, cricket will be the ultimate sufferer,” Sethi said.
“There should be a middle way to solve problems that surely threaten the smooth hosting of ICC and ACC events. In case of India’s refusal to travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, the government will not allow us to travel to India to figure in the World Cup matches,” he added.
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