Within a span of 24 hours, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have had different takes on the possibility of the Asia Cup this year.
Earlier, PCB CEO Wasim Khan stated that the board is hopeful of the conduct of the coveted multilateral series in UAE or Sri Lanka.
“The Asia Cup will go ahead. The Pakistan team returns from England on 2nd September so we can have the tournament in September or October. There are some things which will only get clear in due course of time. We are hopeful of having the Asia Cup because Sri Lanka has not had too many cases of the coronavirus. If they can’t do it, then the UAE is also ready,” Wasim said in a press conference earlier.
However, one of the functionaries in the apex cricketing board in India suggested that the proposed window by PCB doesn’t suit them.
Also, the executive tagged the possibility of the tournament as a ‘struggle’ looking at the ‘challenging’ times.
“Asia Cup will be a struggle this year. Going by the statement of the Chief Executive of the PCB, the window that suits them doesn’t suit India. Maybe they can postpone PSL next year if BCCI is able to open up a window during that period. Otherwise conducting the Asia Cup doesn’t seem too practical as these are challenging times,” the functionary was quoted as saying by Outlook.
The ongoing pandemic situation has disrupted the calendar year for 2020, with clouds hovering over the prized 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia as well as the 13th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Earlier in February, the BCCI President Sourav Ganguly gave the nod to the event scheduled later in September this year.
The 2018 edition of the Asia Cup was held in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, where the Indian team came out victorious by defeating Bangladesh in the final.
