Asia Cup uncertain

KATHMANDU, May 1: Nepal is on the verge of winning the ACC Premier Cup, which will allow Nepal to enter the Asia Cup. As the final match between Nepal and UAE was postponed due to rain, the remaining match will be played on the reserve day tomorrow from 9 am onwards.

The players are equally enthusiastic as the supporters after Nepal is about to play in the Asia Cup. For Nepalese players, the Asia Cup is a dynamic opportunity to play with famous nations of world cricket like India and Pakistan. However, as the Nepalese team is on the verge of qualifying for the Asia Cup, the future of the tournament is in doubt. Especially due to political reasons, the Asia Cup has become uncertain due to India and Pakistan, each other's eternal rivals. In other words, there is a possibility that the political conflict between India and Pakistan will have an impact on sports (Asia Cup).

The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has decided to host the Asia Cup in Pakistan in September. However, India has refused to send its team to Pakistan due to the long-standing political conflict between the two countries. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is having further discussions with their government regarding this.

As the possibility of India not sending its team increases, all the parties involved are currently looking for a proper solution. The host country Pakistan also wants the tournament to continue. According to sources, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has submitted a separate proposal to the ACC for that.

PCB has proposed to play the other matches of the Asia Cup in Pakistan, except for the match that India will play, which will be played in some other country (neutral venue). PCB Management Committee Chairman Najam Sethi made this proposal in the ACC last month as well. He named his proposal the 'Hybrid Model'.

ACC President Jay Shah was also positive about his proposal. However, after returning to India, Shah expressed his opinion against the PCB's proposal. This is why various speculations about the future of ACC have started recently. Only two weeks ago, Shah said that he was waiting for the opinion of the countries that will participate in the Asia Cup.

Recently, the Cricket Boards of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh made an informal proposal to the PCB to move the tournament to a neutral venue, which PCB has not agreed to. Sri Lanka and UAE have also shown interest in hosting the Asia Cup. However, Pakistan does not seem ready for this.

Recently, it is reported that the BCCI is in favor of canceling the Asia Cup itself. The BCCI has already moved ahead with the format of the tournament in which five countries will participate separately instead of the Asia Cup. According to the news, the ACC is likely to take a concrete decision regarding the Asia Cup soon.