New Delhi: India and Pakistan have once again been placed in the same group, informed Jay Shah, the president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) today.
Also joining India and Pakistan for the tournament will be Bangladesh, defending champions Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and a team from the qualifiers.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Jay Shah today announced the cricket calendar of the council for 2023 and 2024.
Accordingly, 2023 will start off with Men’s Challengers Cup, a ten-team fifty-over tournament.
Also joining India and Pakistan for the tournament will be Bangladesh, defending champions Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and a team from the qualifiers.
As per the calendar, ACC will organize 145 games in both ODIs and T20Is during its two-year cycle. On the further breakdown of the cycle, 75 games will be played in 2023 while 70 matches are set to happen in 2024. The men’s emerging (U23) Asia Cup is also back again.
Shah, who is also the Honorary Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), posted through his social media accounts the “pathway structure and cricket calendars” for cricket in Asia.
Then in March, a Men’s Under-16 Regional tournament will be held. The tournament will feature eight teams, region-wise.
The winners and runners-up of the aforementioned Men’s Challengers Cup will qualify for Men’s Premier Cup, a 50-over tournament. This competition will be played in April and will span 24 matches.
In June, a Women’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup will be held. It will feature eight teams, divided in groups of two each. One group will feature India A, Pakistan A, Thailand and Hong Kong. The other group will have teams like Sri Lanka A, Bangladesh A, UAE, Malaysia.
Next up will be Men’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup, a 50-over tournament. The top-three teams of the tournament will qualify for this tournament. This competition will have eight teams, divided in two groups of four each.
In August, a Men’s L2 Coaching Course and a Curators Workshop will be held.
The men’s Asia Cup, the main tournament of ACC, will be held in September. It will feature six teams, divided in two groups of three teams.
In October, November, and December, one tournament each for Men’s Under 19 Cricket will be held. A Challengers Cup will kick off things for Under-19 cricketers in October.
Men’s Under-19 Premier Cup will be held in November, which will feature ten teams. The first group will feature UAE, Kuwait, Nepal, Qatar and Qualifier 1. The next group will have Oman, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and a second qualifier. It will feature the winner of the Challengers Cup.
In December will be held the Men’s Asia Cup at the under-19 level, featuring the winner, runner up and a third-place finish team from Premier Cup. Teams confirmed for this tournament are, India, Pakistan in Group 1 along with two qualifiers and Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan final qualifier in Group 2.
2024 will start off with Men’s and Women’s T20 Challenger Cup in February and March respectively. It will be followed by Men’s and Women’s T20 Premier Cup in April and May respectively.
The Women’s T20 Asia Cup is held in September and will be followed by the Men’s U19 Asia Cup and Men’s T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup in October and December respectively.
