The debate over the venue of Asia Cup 2023 remains one of the hottest topics on the lips of cricket experts. The issue was generated when BCCI secretary Jay Shah asked the Indian Team not to visit Pakistan for the Asia Cup 2023. They asked for a neutral venue instead of visiting the neighboring country.
The latest update says that the cricket boards of India and Pakistan have arrived at a workable solution for the Asia Cup. They have agreed to a hybrid model where the Asia Cup tournament will happen in Pakistan but Team India will play its matches at a neutral venue, which could be UAE or England.
Former Pakistan cricketer Imran Nazir has said that India is not willing to come to Pakistan as they have a fear of losing the match against the hosts. Security issues are just an excuse to hide their fear.
“There is no security reason. Just look at how many teams have been to Pakistan. Forget A teams, even Australia visited. These are all just cover-ups. The truth is that India won’t come to Pakistan [for Asia Cup] because they are afraid of losing. Security is just an excuse. Come and play cricket. When you start playing politics, there is no way back,” he said on the Nadir Ali Podcast.
He further added, “People want to watch India vs Pakistan games because there is a different level of excitement to it. The entire world knows it. Even we as cricketers feel that for cricket to reach every corner of the world, India-Pakistan matches need to happen. We used to play so much cricket. They are such a balanced tea but India cannot tolerate losing. It’s a game; you’ll win some, you’ll lose some.”
India’s last tour of Pakistan was in 2006 where they played a Test series and an ODI series. India lost the Test series 0-1 but went on to win the ODI series 4-1. Since then, India has not played any bilateral series in Pakistan due to political tensions between the two countries.
