Babar Azam and Rohit Sharma
- Basit Ali urges relocation of Asia Cup 2025 from India.
- Pakistan may not participate in Asia Cup if India doesn’t visit Pakistan.
- Ali praises PCB Chief Mohsin Naqvi for strategic response.
Ex-Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali has urged for the relocation of the Asia Cup 2025 from India, following their recent acquisition of the hosting rights.
On his YouTube channel, Ali expressed disapproval of BCCI secretary Jay Shah’s actions, which he believes are intended to hinder Pakistan’s involvement in upcoming competitions.
“Well done, Jay Shah. You’ve killed two birds with one stone. You kill two birds with one stone, but Basit Ali kills three birds with one stone. Now let me give you some free advice. Try to shift the Asia Cup to some other country. Jay Shah could take a U-turn after my show,” stated Ali.
He indicated that Pakistan’s participation in the Asia Cup in India is uncertain if the BCCI does not reciprocate by sending its team to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy 2025.
Ali accused Shah of orchestrating the Asia Cup’s location to favor a hybrid model for both tournaments.
“Jay Shah knew that India would have to go to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy; otherwise, Pakistan won’t come for the Asia Cup. Pakistan won’t even go for the T20 World Cup if India says no for the Champions Trophy. To hell with the hybrid model. There could also be another lollipop of India adopting a hybrid model for the Asia Cup so that Pakistan do the same for the Champions Trophy,” he remarked.
Despite Pakistan’s resistance to relocating any Champions Trophy 2025 matches, the BCCI has not yet commented on India’s potential visit to Pakistan.
Ali also commended PCB Chief Mohsin Naqvi for his strategic prowess, placing him on par with Jay Shah.
“I agree Jay Shah is very sharp, but the guy in front of him, the current PCB chairman, is also in the same league. Now you will have to come forward openly and declare that the Asia Cup is in India, so we would have to go to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy,” Ali concluded.
With Pakistan poised to host a significant tournament for the first time since the 2008 Asia Cup, they are actively working towards its success. Nonetheless, India’s reluctance to participate in the Champions Trophy 2025 poses a significant hurdle for the PCB.
