The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has made a U-turn and decided to attend the Asian Cricket Council’s (ACC) Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Thursday. The meeting will take place in Dhaka and will decide the fate of the upcoming Asia Cup, which India was scheduled to host in September. Sources within the BCCI confirmed that the board has indeed decided to attend the meeting virtually.
“BCCI will be represented virtually by its vice-president Rajeev Shukla, who is the designated ACC board member. Since the venue with regards to Asia Cup needs to be zeroed in on, BCCI decided to attend the meeting virtually,”” a BCCI source said on the condition of anonymity.
The hot topic will be the venue of the Asia Cup T20, which the BCCI is scheduled to host. The UAE, with its grounds in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah, has emerged as a strong contender.
Sri Lanka is also in the running to host, as India will not travel to Bangladesh.
Earlier, amid rising political tension between India and Bangladesh, the BCCI decided not to visit Dhaka and threatened to boycott the all-important AGM. The meeting on Thursday is set to determine the status of the Asia Cup, which is supposed to be played in a T20 format. If the tournament gets the go-ahead, it will most likely be played in the UAE, with India maintaining its hosting rights.
Considering the fact that the BCCI and PCB are not keen on playing on each other’s turf, the UAE has emerged as a frontrunner to host the latest edition of the Asia Cup.
Earlier, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) had sided with the BCCI, saying they wouldn’t visit Dhaka for the AGM. Considering the BCCI’s changing stance, the two cricket boards are now also expected to attend the meeting virtually. The ACC chief Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), was determined to host the meeting in Dhaka.
