Asia Cup 2023: India Refuses to Send Cricket Team to Pakistan

Pakistan is set to host the Asia Cup 2023. Still, the main issue surrounding the event was India’s participation, which was uncertain until the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) annual general meeting. The BCCI top brass held their annual public meeting in Mumbai yesterday, October 18, and decided not to travel to Pakistan for the continental championship, instead demanding the event be shifted to a neutral venue.

BCCI Secretary Jay Shah:

BCCI secretary Jay Shah said India will not go to Pakistan for the 2023 Asia Cup and hinted at a neutral venue for the Asia Cup. Jay Shah is also the president of the Asian Cricket Council. He said: “I say this as ACC president. We, India, can’t go there to Pakistan. In the past, the Asian Cup was also played at a neutral venue.

Schedule of the Board of Control for Cricket in India:

The statement came just days after Cricbuzz reported, “India is open to traveling to Pakistan, and it is definitely on the agenda of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). However, Indian permission will be subject to the Government of the day.”

Annual General Meeting of BCCI:

Traveling to Pakistan for the Asia Cup came up for discussion at the BCCI’s 91st Annual General Meeting in the presence of a new batch of BCCI office-bearers – President Roger Binny, Treasurer Ashish Shelar, and Vice-President Rajiv Shukla. Jay Shah said, “It is the government that decides to allow our team to visit Pakistan, so we will not comment on that, but for Asia Cup 2023, it has been decided that the tournament will be held at a neutral venue.” The sour statement came amid goodwill gestures between the players of the two countries during the T20 World Cup 2022 ahead of their much-anticipated clash in Melbourne on October 23.

No official decision has been made:

The Pakistan Cricket Board has yet to respond to Shah’s comments as the ACC has yet to meet to discuss the matter, let alone take an official decision. A PCB representative said the board would not comment on the topic; nevertheless, a strong reaction is not excluded. For example, the board is already discussing leaving the ACC. For this reason, no official decision has been made yet. The PCB is expected to respond to the ACC in writing regarding the comments. It is certainly likely that the PCB would have written to the ACC about the remarks made by Shah, specifically asking in what capacity Shah made such remarks on behalf of the Indian board, given that he is also the chairman of the ACC. Interestingly, during Shah’s presidency, Pakistan decided to host the 2023 Asia Cup.

Read More: T20 World Cup: Pakistan’s Asif Ali voted ICC Player of the Month.