To confirm Team India’s participation in the ODI World Cup in India later this year, PCB Chairman Najam Sethi has asked BCCI Secretary Jay Shah for a “written guarantee” regarding Team India’s inclusion in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy to be held in Pakistan.
India will host the ODI World Cup in October and November 2023
The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will reportedly host the India-Pakistan match as part of the ICC event, according to recent reports. The locations for India’s fiercest competitors could be Chennai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata.
The Asian Cricket Council (ACC), headed by Jay Shah, has yet to formally endorse the proposed “hybrid model” for the upcoming Asia Cup in Pakistan, so Sethi has reportedly been advised to take a tough stance, according to a PTI report.
India would play its Asia Cup matches in the UAE, while Pakistan would continue to host the other matches, according to the hybrid model proposed by PCB in response to India’s refusal to visit Pakistan.
Sethi will fly out of Dubai on May 8 to meet with representatives from the ACC and ICC, according to a source cited by the news agency.
In the meetings, the PCB president will try to win support for Pakistan’s position that it will only play its World Cup 2023 matches in India if the BCCI and ICC provide written guarantees that India will come to Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Pakistan’s Perspective on the 2023 Asia Cup
The PTI report also stated that PCB chief Sethi recently met with some government representatives to get their opinions on whether Pakistan should compete in the Asia Cup if it is not held in Lahore and Dubai as they had proposed in their hybrid model plan.
It was reported that a source said: “Sethi is anticipated to make it very clear to the ACC members that either they accept Pakistan’s hybrid proposal or the PCB will not participate in the competition this year if it is moved from Pakistan.”
“It appears that Sethi has now come to the realization that it is time to make some difficult choices and is unwilling to accept any further delays from the ACC on the completion of the venues and schedule for the Asia Cup. No Asia Cup matches will take place in Pakistan, according to Sethi, and no Pakistani team will compete.”
Only at ICC and ACC events do India and Pakistan meet because of their tense relations. Both parties exchanged numerous jabs over the BCCI’s decision to forgo holding the Asia Cup in Pakistan.