Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has officially announced the Asia Cup 2023 schedule and venue. The tournament will be held in Pakistan and Sri Lanka from 31st August to 17th September 2023. The participating teams are from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nepal. This will be Nepal’s first-ever appearance in an Asian event. The tournament will have a total of 13 ODI matches.
Asia Cup 2023 was initially scheduled to take place exclusively in Pakistan. However, the tournament faced a challenge when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) expressed security concerns and declined to travel to Pakistan for the tournament. To ensure that the hosting rights were maintained, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) proposed two alternatives within a hybrid model. The first option involved arranging for India to play their matches at a neutral venue, while the rest of the matches would be held in Pakistan. The second option suggested conducting four group stage matches in Pakistan initially, followed by the subsequent phase, including matches featuring the Indian team and the final, at a neutral venue.
The second option of the hybrid model has been accepted. Four out of the 13 matches will be held in Pakistan, while the remaining nine matches will take place in Sri Lanka.
This will be the first time since 2008 that matches of a multi-nation tournament will be staged in Pakistan. PCB chairman Najam Sethi has expressed delight that hybrid model for the ACC Asia Cup 2023 has been accepted. This means Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will remain as the event host and stage matches in Pakistan with Sri Lanka as the neutral venue.
The organizers will soon announce the complete Asia Cup 2023 schedule, providing further details on the matches and venues.
The Asia Cup 2023 will have India, Pakistan and Nepal in one group, and Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan in another group. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Four stage. The top two from the Super Four stage will then face off in the final. Matches will be played in the 50-over format as preparation for the ODI World Cup 2023 in India scheduled in October-November.
India have been crowned Asian champions 7 times, Sri Lanka have won Asia cup 6 times, while Pakistan has won Asia Cup 2 times so far. Bangladesh has never won any Asia Cup title.
Sri Lanka are the defending champions, though the 2022 event was played in the 20-over format. The last Asia Cup 50-over edition was played in 2018 in the UAE, where India beat Bangladesh in a thrilling final.
For more updates on Asia Cup 2023, stay tuned at Explore It Beyond!
