Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan all pulled out of their “Hybrid Model” plan, leaving Pakistan with no other choice but to pull out of the Asia Cup 2023 in September. Najam Sethi, the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), came up with a plan called the “Hybrid Model.” Under this plan, Pakistan would host 3–4 Asia Cup games while the rest of India’s games would be played at a neutral site.
After India turned down a trip to Pakistan because of safety worries, the idea was brought up. But it is now clear that Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan have all agreed with the BCCI that the event should be moved out of Pakistan.
“It doesn’t really matter if the members of the Asian Cricket Council’s executive board meet online or if they have a real meeting later this month. But the PCB now knows that Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan won’t support their hybrid plan for the Asia Cup, according to a person who spoke to the PTI news agency about the situation.
The source said that Sethi had already talked to the members of his cricket management team and the right government leaders about what Pakistan would do if they couldn’t host any Asia Cup 2023 games at home. Sethi has said many times that Pakistan will not play in the event if it is moved from Pakistan to a neutral country. A source said that it is likely that PCB will decide to skip the Asia Cup.
“Pakistan can only do one of two things: play the tournament at a neutral site or drop out,” a person from the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) said. “If Pakistan doesn’t play, it will still be called the Asia Cup, but the deal with the broadcaster will have to be renegotiated.”
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and India have all said that it would be too hard and too expensive to hold the Asia Cup in Pakistan or another country. Instead, they think it should be held in Sri Lanka, since India can’t go to Pakistan.
The person also said that the Asia Cup might not happen at all this year and that India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan might end up playing in a 50-over game with other teams before the World Cup. “There’s a good chance the Asia Cup won’t happen this year because without Pakistan and India games, broadcasters aren’t likely to offer the same amount they did when Pakistan was included,” a person said.
The person also said that India is getting ready to host a tournament for four or five teams if the Asia Cup doesn’t happen. We don’t yet know how Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan’s choices will affect how these boards work together.
Pakistan has already turned down an offer to play some ODIs in Sri Lanka when it goes there for a two-Test series. Sri Lanka had offered to host all of the Asia Cup matches, but Pakistan turned that offer down. The source said that recent events could force Pakistan to show its hand about whether or not to send its team to India for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023.
