'India would not like the ICC to step in' - Najam Sethi warns India again over Asia Cup 2023 hosting row

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi has advised BCCI to take a rational decision regarding its stance on not travelling to Pakistan for the Asia Cup 2023. Pakistan won the hosting rights for the continental tournament in 2022, however, the tournament could be moved out of the nation due to India’s reluctance to travel to the country due to political issues between the two nations.

Commenting on the issue, Sethi said that he’s not worried about Asia Cup but the ODI World Cup 2023 that is scheduled to potentially take place in India from October 5. He further stated that the boycotting game will keep on continuing if the two boards don’t reach a middle ground now.

"BCCI should take a good, rational decision so that we don't have any problems going forward. I'm not worried about the Asia Cup, it's the World Cup, and India should not be looking at a situation where we end up boycotting the Asia Cup and also the World Cup and then India ends up boycotting the Champions Trophy - there'll be a huge mess," PCB chairman Najam Sethi was quoted as saying by NDTV.

According to reports, Pakistan presented a hybrid model to the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) where India would have played their matches in the U.A.E while the rest of the teams would have played in Pakistan. However, the model reportedly hasn’t been received well by BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board) and Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) due to logistical issues.

How can you ignore our team and our country? : Najam Sethi

Further speaking about the controversy, Sethi said that Pakistan can’t be ignored as they’re ranked higher than India in ICC ODI rankings and hence ICC should step in to resolve the issue.

"And so we (Pakistan) are right at the top (ODI rankings). So the thing is, how can you ignore our team and our country? So the ICC should step in. But my sense is that India would not like the ICC to step in," he added.

Notably, India last travelled to Pakistan in 2008 when the country hosted the Asia Cup 2008. The two teams last played a bilateral series in India in 2012-13 and have since only faced each other in multi-national tournaments.