A new update on the Asia Cup 2023 has come courtesy of the Pakistan news website, The News, who has reported that Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nepal have agreed to Pakistan’s hybrid model, leaving India with very few options.
This year, Pakistan will host the Asia Cup in September, but India is unwilling to visit its bitter foe because of security reasons stemming from tense diplomatic relations. The deteriorating ties between Pakistan and India over the past ten years have made bilateral cricket a casualty, and the two neighbors now only face each other in multi-team tournaments held in neutral locations.
In response to India’s worries, PCB has suggested a “hybrid model” that would allow the adjacent nation to host its matches in the United Arab Emirates. The PCB authorities felt that India wanted the entire event to be transferred outside of Pakistan, albeit the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has not yet provided a formal response to the idea.
PCB has been making hectic efforts to convince all the ACC members to agree to its proposal. Pakistan has offered two options in the hybrid model.
In the first option, Pakistan would host all other matches while a neutral venue would host India’s matches.
In a second option, Pakistan would host four of the group stage matches in the first phase while a neutral site would host the final and Indian team matches, and the rest of league stage matches in the second phase.
According to Geo News, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nepal’s cricket boards have decided to go with option two, which calls for these nations to play their group matches in Pakistan before the league shifts to a neutral site that would be decided upon amicably.
However, there is still no agreement on whether to stage the second phase in Dubai or Sri Lanka because all nations, with the exception of Pakistan, advocate hosting the competition in the South Asian nation.
Because it guarantees that gate money will flow into their account, PCB wants UAE to be the neutral location. However, Dambulla and Pallekele, two Sri Lankan cities, might also be regarded as neutral locations.
India is in a bind as a result of the support of four major teams and the forceful argument made before the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) by PCB chief Najam Sethi, according to sources.
They claimed that since there aren’t many options left, choosing whether or not to send the Indian team to the Asia Cup in 2023 has become a difficult assignment for BCCI and ACC. According to the sources, the ACC vice president who met Sethi told ACC President Jay Shah about the meeting’s specifics.
They claimed that it was now feasible because Pakistan was required to travel to India for the World Cup in exchange for accepting the hybrid model. The PCB will then consult with the government as a result of this, they continued.
The sources added that Jay Shah could ask the Indian authorities for their opinion on the Asia Cup 2023 during the BCCI special meeting. They claimed that Shah’s participation in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2023) is causing delays in topics pertaining to the World Cup and the Asia Cup.
According to sources, the PCB is waiting for India’s decision over the Asia Cup in the upcoming week before Pakistan decides on its method of World Cup participation. It should be remembered that Pakistan has not given the go-ahead to travel to India to take part in the massive event.
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