SLC is hopeful of delivering safe, successful Asia Cup; final decision after IPL final - Jay Shah

BCCI secretary and President of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), Jay Shah, has said that a final decision regarding the hosting rights of the upcoming Asia Cup will be taken after assessing the situation in Sri Lanka following the completion of IPL 2022.

The T20 version of the Asia Cup is scheduled to take place in the Island nation from August 27. However, the country's deteriorating economic situation has cast doubts on its ability to stage a multi-nation event.

Speaking to ANI on Friday (April 15), Shah said that he has held detailed discussions with the Sri Lankan Cricket Board (SLC) officials about the current situation in the country.

Shah added that SLC is still hopeful of smoothly staging the upcoming edition of the Asia Cup. However, he added that the final decision would be taken after the culmination of the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League.

He also confirmed that the BCCI would host SLC office-bearers at the IPL final, which will take place on March 29.

"I had a detailed discussion with the officials of Sri Lanka Cricket on the situation in the country and its impact on cricket. SLC is hopeful of delivering a safe and successful Men's Asia Cup. The office-bearers of SLC will be hosted at IPL 2022 final on May 29, and we will further assess the situation." 

The 16th edition of the Asia Cup was originally scheduled to take place in Pakistan in September 2020. But, it was eventually postponed to June 2021 due to the global pandemic.

Pakistan swapped the hosting rights with Sri Lanka for the 2021 event, but it was once again postponed due to a chock-a-block calendar.

And now, when it looked like Sri Lanka would host it in August 2022, the Island nation has been plagued with worsening economic conditions.

Sri Lanka is on the verge of complete bankruptcy, with people hitting the streets against the ruling Gotabaya Rajapaksa government to demand essential commodities like milk, wheat, rice, petrol, electricity etc.

India has been providing both credit lines and humanitarian aid to their Lankan counterparts, and it remains to be seen when and how the latter will come out of such a desperate situation.

As for the Asia Cup, India, the most successful side in the competition's history, are the defending champions. The Rohit Sharma-led unit will look to seal its eighth title later this year.