The Asia Cup 2021 has already been suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic which was earlier scheduled to be held in June this year in Sri Lanka. However, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) said on Sunday that it will be played in 2023. Howveer, they again shared that it cannot be held before that due to the lack of a playing window during a packed cricket calendar for the teams as well.
“It would therefore only be feasible for this edition of the tournament to be held in 2023 as there is already an Asia Cup in 2022. Dates for the same will be confirmed in due course,” said the ACC in a statement.
It is also noteworthy that, the tournament had originally been slated to be played in Pakistan but its strange relation with India and its unwillingness to travel there led to the event being moved to Sri Lanka, where it was slated to take place in September 2020 as well. However, the tournament was then postponed for the first time due to the global pandemic novel COVID-19 which nearly brought the entire world into a standstill.
READ HERE: PCB gets all approvals to host PSL 6 matches in Abu Dhabi
“The ACC Executive Board, in face of the risks and restrictions posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, had made the difficult decision to postpone the Asia Cup 2020 to 2021. Since then, the ACC has been working with its participants and stakeholders to try and ensure that the event is held in the year,” said the ACC.
“However, on account of a packed FTP [Future Tours Programme], it has been concluded that there is no practical window in the year when all the teams would be available to participate. The Board has accordingly considered the matter very carefully and determined that the only way ahead would be to postpone the event,” it added.
ALSO READ: Immediate Focus On England Test Series, Says Kane Williamson
As far as Team India’s current series is concerned, they will tour England next month for the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand and then the five-match Test series against the host as well.
