Asia Cup 2023 – India vs Pakistan: Team India is set to go eye-to-eye with arch-rivals Pakistan at least twice in the upcoming edition of the Asia Cup, said a report surfaced on the internet. Following a 10-month hiatus since their encounter during the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 held in October-November, India and Pakistan are set for yet another clash.
The sources close to the development say the most anticipated India vs Pakistan game in the Asia Cup 2023 is likely to be scheduled on 2nd September. The two sides are expected to meet twice in the group stages on September 10.
Notably, the official schedule for the Asia Cup 2023 has not been announced yet. However, the experts believe that the India vs Pakistan game could be held more than once in the tournament.
In fact, Rohit Sharma’s India could face Pakistan thrice in the same event if both the teams qualify for the knockout stage followed by a fourth encounter should they make their way to the final of the continental event.
Both the India vs Pakistan matches during the Asia Cup 2023 group stages are to be held in either Kandy or Dambulla in Sri Lanka, added the report.
The upcoming sixteenth edition of the Asia Cup will be played from August 31st to September 17 in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. While four matches of the six-team tournament will be held in Pakistan, the remaining games will be staged in Sri Lanka. The hybrid model for the event was confirmed following the Asian Council Meeting (ACC) held recently.
Earlier, Pakistan was solely scheduled to host the Asia Cup 2023, however, team India expressed its reservation about travelling to Pakistan due to the apparent security threats to the personalities. The BCCI secretary had earlier announced that the Men in Blue won’t visit Pakistan for the event and the event will have to be shifted out of Pakistan.
Eventually, following a lot of back and forth between the PCB and BCCI, it was zeroed on that the Asia Cup 2023 will be held in a hybrid model. Four matches, including Pakistan’s clash with Nepal, which is the only home game Pakistan is set to play on their soil, will be held in Pakistan. The other three matches in Pakistan are – Afghanistan versus Bangladesh, Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the remaining nine matches in the Asia Cup 2023, which will be held in the ODI format, will be hosted by Sri Lanka, which includes the highly talked about fixture of India vs Pakistan.
Reportedly the opening ceremony of the sixteenth edition of the six-team Asia Cup will be organised in Multan, where Pakistan is set to play its solitary home game against minnows Nepal on August 31st.
The full-fledged schedule of the Asia Cup 2023 is expected to be out by Wednesday.
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