The Asia Cup is to be held this year. However, there has been a lot of controversy regarding its hosting for some time now. Pakistan got the hosting of this tournament, but Asian Cricket Council President Jay Shah had said in his statement last year that the Indian team will not tour Pakistan.
However, Pakistan is opposing it and has also offered a hybrid model. The statement of former Pakistan captain and wicket-keeper batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed has come to the fore on this whole issue. He said that the team led by Rohit Sharma should come to his country for the Asia Cup.
Sarfaraz said, “We should not even talk about India for coming to Pakistan. We should notify our stand that India must come and play in Pakistan. The way people of Pakistan have seen Steve Smith, Joe Root and James Anderson playing in Pakistan. Similarly, they want to see India vs. Pakistan match in Pakistan. Every team is coming to Pakistan. We should not appeal to teams to come and play in Pakistan; it is our right that cricket should come to Pakistan, and teams should come and play.”
Sarfaraz further stated, “Pakistani players and PCB have fought to bring cricket back to the country. Our security forces, intelligence unit and army personnel have played a vital role in bringing cricket back to Pakistan. India should come to play in Pakistan, and every team here should support Pakistan. The way we host teams, hardly any country in the world can match us.”
Pakistan has suffered a major setback regarding the hosting of the Asia Cup. The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) on Monday decided to shift the Asia Cup out of the country after PCB’s proposal to organize the tournament on a ‘hybrid model’ was rejected by the member nations.
It has been said in the report that due to excessive heat in the UAE in September, there will be a fear of injury to the players. In such a situation, Sri Lanka is at the forefront of the race to host the six-nation tournament.
