Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is once again at loggerheads with Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Jay Shah, who is also the BCCI secretary. PCB has alleged that Jay Shah went against all and unilaterally decided to continue with Colombo as IND vs PAK venue among other Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 matches. Behind all that, Pakistan media has cited a mysterious email that Jay Shah sent and then retracted.
Till Monday night, it was certain that the bad weather in Colombo would force Asia Cup 2023 Super matches to Hambantota. But then, in uno reverse, Colombo retained the matches.
It must be noted that with heavy rain in Pallekele, the Group A IND vs PAK match ended up with no result. Even though the weather predictions have improved in Colombo, the rain threat still looms large. Colombo will host five Super 4 games besides Asia Cup 2023 Final.
Mysterious ACC email on Asia Cup 2023
ACC sent an email to all member boards, confirming that all matches in Colombo have been shifted to Hambantota. The decision was taken after information from the Sri Lanka meteorological department. Even ACC was working towards the final hurdle of the logistics. However, sometime in the afternoon, ACC retracted the email, saying the Colombo leg would go on as scheduled. But there has been no justification on why the decision was reversed in favour of Colombo.
It has not gone down well with PCB. It has lodged a strong protest against Jay Shah for not safeguarding crucial matches. Even though the chances of rain have slightly improved, there is still a threat of rain. It called for an immediate ACC executive board meeting. PCB also and sent a letter to Jay Shah, protesting the decision on Asia Cup 2023 schedule.
Rain threat on IND vs PAK
As things stand, as per weather forecast stations, there is a 70-90% chance of rain every day for the next 15 days. On Sunday (Sep 10), there is a 90% chance of rain in the evening. With one IND vs PAK match already washed out, not just broadcasters but the hosts will also lose revenue. As the entire tournament is dependent on at least two IND vs PAK matches, certainty of the match would be ideal.
But the email put everything in chaos. Players are still not sure whether the matches will be in Colombo or in Hambantota. Even Team India travelled to Colombo assuming that it would be as per the original schedule. However, ACC President Jay Shah sent a rejoinder, defending the Asia Cup 2023 scheduling.
“All the full members, media rights holder, and in-stadia rights holders were initially hesitant to commit to hosting the entire tournament in Pakistan. This reluctance stemmed from concerns related to the security and economic situation prevailing in the country,” Jay Shah said in the statement.
Asia Cup 2023 Schedule – Revised
| Date | Venue | Match | Stage | Match Timing/Result |
| 6 Sep | Lahore | Pakistan vs Bangladesh | Super 4 | 3:00 PM IST (Pak win by 7 wickets) |
| 9 Sep | Colombo | Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh | Super 4 | 3:00 PM IST |
| 10 Sep | Colombo | India vs Pakistan | Super 4 | 3:00 PM IST |
| 11 Sep | Colombo | Reserve Day | (Ind won by 228 runs) | |
| 12 Sep | Colombo | India vs Sri Lanka | Super 4 | (India won by 41 runs) |
| 14 Sep | Colombo | Pakistan vs Sri Lanka | Super 4 | (Sri Lanka won by 2 wickets) |
| 15 Sep | Colombo | India vs Bangladesh | Super 4 | 3:00 PM IST |
| 17 Sep | Colombo | Final | 3:00 PM IST | |
| 18 Sep | Colombo | Reserve Day |
