The Asian Cricket Council is set to decide on a different venue for the Asia Cup ODI tournament in March. This decision comes after BCCI secretary Jay Shah and PCB chairman Najam Sethi had their first formal meeting in Bahrain on Saturday. The continental tournament was initially scheduled to take place in Pakistan in September this year but Shah, also the ACC chairman, announced last October that India will not travel to Pakistan.
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PTI’s reports further say that the United Arab Emirates with its three venues in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah are the favourites to host the tournament. But this decision will not be announced immediately. All heads of ACC member nations attended this meeting which was called by PCB chairman Sethi after ACC released the itinerary which didn’t include Pakistan as the host.
"The ACC affiliates met today and there were a lot of constructive discussions. But the shift of venue has been postponed till March. But be rest assured that with India not going to Pakistan, the tournament will have to be shifted. A tournament without Virat Kohlis, Rohit Sharmas and Shubman Gills will have the sponsors back out," a senior BCCI official told PTI.
Earlier Pakistan was adamant about hosting a high-profile tournament like Asia Cup as they undergoing an economic crisis and inflation has hit the country very hard. Pakistan's currency (PKR) has plummeted to Rs 277 against 1 US Dollar. Hence hosting this tournament would have been a major boost for Pakistan.
Hence if the tournament is moved to UAE, there is a chance that all the member nations will also be allowed to earn from the broadcast revenues. In another decision, the ACC has decided to increase the annual budget allocated for the Afghanistan Cricket Association to 15 per cent from six which helps the nation improve the condition of women's cricket.
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