Pakistan is likely to host the 2022 edition of the Asia Cup, with Sri Lanka hosting in 2023, reported ESPNcricinfo.
If Asia Cup had gone ahead this year, it would have been a T20 affair in order to give all participating teams a chance to get practice before the T20 World Cup which is to be played in India later this year.
With Asia Cup 2021 set to be officially postponed, it is now emerging that the tournament will be played in consecutive years — 2022 and 2023.
Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ehsan Mani Had Earlier Also Confirmed Asia Cup 2021 Was Likely To Be Postponed As The Dates Clashed
Earlier, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ehsan Mani had confirmed that the Asia Cup slated to be held in June this year was likely to be postponed if India managed to qualify for the finals of the World Test Championship.
“Asia Cup was set to go last year but it got postponed to this year. Right now, it looks like Asia Cup won’t be going ahead this year as the WTC finals are set to go ahead in June. Sri Lanka had said that they would try to host the tournament in June,” Mani had told reporters in Karachi during a press conference.
“The dates are clashing. We think the tournament would not be going ahead, and we might have to push the tournament to 2023,” he added.
There has not been an Asia Cup after 2018. The tournament planned for 2020 scheduled in Pakistan had to be postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. India has managed to win the last two editions of the tournament.
Reasons For Asia Cup’s Likely Postponement Are COVID-19, LPL, BPL, And Missed Series Of 2020
The Asia Cup scheduled for 2021 had to be postponed, with all four major Asian sides facing packed schedules until the end of the year. It was set to be hosted by Sri Lanka, mid-year. Partly, the reason for the postponement is due to the pandemic – both the IPL and PSL had to be cut short and rescheduled for later in 2021 due to a breach of their respective bio-bubbles.
This rescheduling takes chunks out of the time available this year. Sri Lanka also plans to play their LPL in August, while Bangladesh’s BPL is also set for later in the year besides Pakistan Super League’s remaining 20 games. On top of which teams are also attempting to catch up on the international series missed in 2020.
The 2018 Asia Cup (also known as Unimoni Asia Cup) was a One-Day International (ODI) cricket tournament that was held in the United Arab Emirates in September 2018. It was the 14th edition of the Asia Cup and the third time the tournament was played in the United Arab Emirates, after the 1984 and 1995 tournaments. India was the defending champions, and retained their title, after beating Bangladesh by three wickets in the final.
India was the defending champions of Asia Cup 2016, and retained their title in 2018, after beating Bangladesh by three wickets in the final. Asia Cup 2016 was a T20 tournament. India had won all of its matches played in Asia Cup 2016 beating Bangladesh 2 times, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and UAE, and apart from the tied game against Afghanistan had won all games in Asia Cup 2018 too.
Sri Lanka had the hosting rights for Asia Cup, which was scheduled to be held in June 2021. Sri Lanka Cricket chief Ashley de Silva on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of hosting the Asia Cup in June 2021 due to the prevailing Covid-19 situation in the sub-continent. Asia Cup 2021 was supported to be played in the lead-up to T20 World Cup, which will be held in October-November.