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Virat Kohli, Babar Azam To Play In The Same Team? Afro-Asia Cup Likely To Return After 17 Years

Virat Kohli and Babar Azam-(X.com)Virat Kohli and Babar Azam-(X.com)

In the latest developments, there are reports that the famous Afro-Asia Cup is likely to be revived after 17 years. The famous competition was first held in 2005, where Africa XI took on Asia XI and saw the likes of Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, and Shoaib Akhtar play in the same team. 

The second edition, which was also the last Afro-Asia Cup edition, was in 2007, and the likes of MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, and Mahela Jayawardene were in the same team. The tournament did not return for another season because of geo-political tensions between India and Pakistan. 

Plans To Revive The League

Before the inception of IPL, it was a dream league for cricket fans as they got to see their favourite stars in a single team. Meanwhile, the latest reports from Forbes suggest that the tournament is likely to be revived again. The tournament was supposed to be revived again in 2023, but the plans did not come into action.

Former Africa Cricket Association (ACA) chair Sumod Damodar remarked he regrets not pushing hard enough for Afro-Asia Cup’s return earlier,  but confirmed that it’s now “being looked at again.”

“Personally, I am very hurt that it (Afro-Asia Cup) didn’t happen. There was not adequate momentum through the ACA, but it is being looked at again. I think it was basically a lack of understanding and not buying into the concept. Our members are regretting it. It needed to be pushed by Africa,” Damodar told Forbes.

It means that there are chances that the likes of Babar Azam, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Shaheen Afridi might feature in the same team. 

Appeal To Jay Shah To Review Afro-Asia Cup

Damodar seeked help from newly-appointed ICC chairman Jay Shah and is hopeful that under his tenure, the Afro-Asia Cup will return. 

“With Mahinda now on the ICC board and Jay Shah running the ICC, that could bring a bit more momentum to this cause. Both of them have always been proactive in trying to make this happen,” Damodar said.