New Delhi, Sep 5: Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Jay Shah on Tuesday attributed the body’s decision to host Asia Cup matches in Sri Lanka on teams’ reluctance to play ODIs in the UAE heat and abrupt changes at the top of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Shah defended the move after former PCB president Najam Sethi’s recent comments in which he mentioned that during his tenure he had suggested that the 2023 Asia Cup be staged in the UAE instead of Sri Lanka, parts of which are experiencing heavy rainfall.
In a statement, Shah said: “The Asia Cup 2022 edition was played in the UAE in the T20 format. It’s important to emphasize that the dynamics of a T20 tournament cannot be directly compared to those of a 100-over One-day format.
“In this context, ACC members received feedback from their respective high-performance teams, expressing concerns about playing One-day matches in the UAE in the month of September. Such a schedule could have potentially led to player fatigue and an increased risk of injuries, particularly right before the all-important ICC Cricket World Cup.”
The ACC has come under criticism after fans were denied what could have been a thrilling finish to the highly-anticipated match between India and Pakistan at Pallekele on Saturday.
Incessant rain led to a washout of the second innings, leaving the two teams to share a point each.
“All the full members, media rights holder, and in-stadia rights holders were initially hesitant to commit to hosting the entire tournament in Pakistan. This reluctance stemmed from concerns related to the security and economic situation prevailing in the country,” Shah, the BCCI secretary, further announced. (PTI)
