Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri feels that it would have been not feasible to play the Asia Cup 2023 in Dubai due to extreme weather conditions even though the matches in Sri Lanka are often interrupted by rain.
The Pakistan Cricket Board, which was originally supposed to host the competition, had to negotiate the venues with ACC after BCCI made it clear that they were not going to Pakistan due to the security and political tension between the two neighbouring countries.
Pakistan and Sri Lanka were co-hosting this edition of the Asia Cup 2023, with the Island nations hosting the majority of the nine games of the tournament, which is being played in Colombo. With the weather being uncertain in Sri Lanka, many fans and experts slammed the decision of ACC to host games in Sri Lanka.
Speaking on Star Sports during the rain delay between the India and Pakistan game, Ravi Shastri said that it is hard to control the unforeseen delays in the game and believes that it would’ve been extremely difficult for the players to play the matches in Dubai at the moment, given to the hot and humid weather.
“If you actually see at this moment in time, there is rain everywhere. You know, there was talk about that it could have been played in Dubai. Dubai is so hot for a 50-over game, these players would have been finished. It’s unforeseen circumstances, it’s a calamity that can happen naturally. You look at Bangladesh, northern India, Mumbai, coastline of India there is rain everywhere,” Ravi Shastri said.
The game resumed after a short rain delay on Monday, as the Indian team came up with plans to finish the game quickly against the arch-rivals. The Men in Blue gained a lot of positivity from the game with KL Rahul and Kuldeep Yadav stepping up for the side alongside Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
There Is No Point Criticising Now, Nothing Can Happen – Wasim Akram
Wasim Akram stated that there was no use in criticising because the venues had already been chosen by the Asian Cricket Council. The PCB requested that the Super 4 matches be moved to Hambantota, but the BCCI reportedly rejected the idea.
“I know it’s frustrating for the players and the fans back home in India, Pakistan, and worldwide as well but this thing you cannot control. A lot of people are criticising a lot of people regarding the Asia Cup but this decision has been made.
“There is no point criticising now, nothing can happen. A lot of people say it should have been played in Pakistan. We can discuss this topic but it’s not our job,” Wasim Akram said.
As for the game, Virat Kohli (122*) and KL Rahul (111) scored centuries after a brilliant foundation laid by Indian openers on Sunday as India posted their joint-highest ODI score of 356/2 against Pakistan.
Indian bowlers were hot to handle for the batters, as the Men in Blue displayed high-quality fast bowling with the new ball, picking wickets in the powerplay before Kuldeep Yadav bagged a five-wicket haul.