The Asia Cup will be played in the ODI format in September this year in Pakistan. But BCCI Secretary Jay Shah made it clear that Team India could not play cricket matches in Pakistan due to security reasons. After this, there is an atmosphere of commotion in Pakistan.
After this, Pakistan has agreed to host the Asia Cup, and Team India will play its matches at neutral venues. Earlier, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka cricket boards were not ready for this. But now a new development has come to the fore.
It is now reported that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka cricket boards have agreed that they are ready to play the Asia Cup under the hybrid model proposed by Pakistan. The Team India should be held elsewhere, and the hosting should be with Pakistan only.
According to Geo News, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have approved the hybrid model, while ACC, i.e., Asian Cricket Council President Jay Shah, is in an official meeting in Dubai within two days. The report quoted sources as saying that BCCI secretary Jay Shah has called an official meeting with the ACC board members to discuss the PCB’s hybrid model for hosting the Asia Cup. An official council meeting is likely to be called by the end of this month to decide on the fate of the Asia Cup.
The report stated that Pakistan had introduced two options in the hybrid model. In the first option, India will play its matches at a neutral venue, while all other matches will be in Pakistan. Another option would be to have four group stage matches in Pakistan in the first leg, while the Indian team’s matches in the second leg and then the next leg, including the final, would be played at neutral venues.
Sources have said that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka Cricket Board agreed on the second option. Pakistan will play a group match against Nepal at home in such a situation. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, drawn in Group 2, will also play their group-stage matches in Pakistan. Pakistan will host four matches to be decided by mutual consent before the league switches to neutral venues. Dambulla and Pallekele, two cities of Sri Lanka, can also be made neutral venues.
