'It is for the government to decide' - Wasim Jaffer opens up on Asia Cup 2023 venue saga

Former India batter Wasim Jaffer has said that nobody is bigger than the government and they are the ones who must decide on whether or not India needs to tour Pakistan for the next year's Asia Cup. However, Jaffer did mention that an adverse decision can strain the relations between both countries. 

Jay Shah, upon his re-election as the BCCI secretary at the last week's AGM in Mumbai, clarified that the Indian team will not be visiting the neighboring country for the continental tournament in 2023, which will be played in the 50-overs format. Shah went onto say that the event will be organized at a neutral venue.

"Well, I think India is hosting the 50-overs World Cup in 2023. If India is hosting it then obviously India expect Pakistan to come and play here. If Asia Cup is hosted in Pakistan, then obviously India needs to go to Pakistan. Otherwise obviously they would also refuse to come to India. So, that's even more trouble", said Jaffer while speaking on 'BatBricks7 presents Run Ki Rubneeti show on CricTracker'.

"So this is beyond us talking. It is about the government to decide, but I think it will create more problems because if India does not go then they will obviously decide not to come to India and therefore, it's a very tricky one. But as you know, we all sportsmen talk politics should be left aside and the sporting events must take place. We play in ICC events since they take place at neutral venues. So why don't we go there and they come here for sporting events?" he added.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in response have said that their participation in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India will be affected should the Asia Cup 2023 hosting rights be taken away from them.