The Asia Cup 2023 tournament will be held from August 31 to September 17. Pakistan and Sri Lanka have been assigned the responsibility of hosting the 16th edition of the Asia Cup. This time, the Asia Cup will be played in the ODI format. It was previously played in the 20-over format. Keeping in view the upcoming ODI World Cup, the ACC has decided to play the Asia Cup in the 50-over format.
Asia Cup 2023: Tournament Format and Hosts
A total of 13 matches will be played in the Asia Cup 2023 tournament, with 4 matches in Pakistan and 9 matches in Sri Lanka. If we talk about the format of the Asia Cup, when 6 teams take part in the tournament, it will be played in a round-robin format. However, when the tournament is played between 6 or more teams, all the teams are divided into 2 groups. Then, a super 4 stage is formed, from which two teams advance to the final and compete for the title.
In the Asia Cup 2023 tournament, all the teams are divided into Group A and Group B. India, Pakistan, and Nepal are placed in Group A, while Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka are in Group B.
Asia Cup 2023: India-Pakistan Match Controversy
There has been a significant debate between the boards of both countries regarding the India-Pakistan match. The Indian team has expressed concerns over security reasons and is reluctant to play in Pakistan. On the other hand, Pakistan has shown displeasure and refused to play in India. This ongoing dispute between the two boards has led to prolonged discussions. In light of this situation, the ACC team has made a decision to organise a third-place match involving both teams.
Previous Performances and Team Expectations
In the previous edition of the Asia Cup 2022 tournament, the Sri Lankan team performed brilliantly and won the title. However, the Indian team had a very disappointing performance. In this edition, the team expects a good performance from all its players. Lokesh Rahul and Shreyas Iyer are injured, and Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah have been already out of the team for a long time due to injury but the inclusion of new players has given the team a good balance.
Some important records related to the Asia Cup are as follows:
- India has won the Asia Cup title 7 times so far, 6 times in the 50-over format and once in the T20 format.
- Sri Lanka is second to India in terms of the number of titles won.
- Sanath Jayasuriya, the Sri Lankan legend, holds the record for scoring the most runs in the Asia Cup with 1220 runs. Sachin Tendulkar holds the record for the most runs scored by an Indian in the Asia Cup. Rohit Sharma is the second-highest run-scorer for India with 745 runs. Rohit Sharma also holds the record for hitting the most sixes in the Asia Cup.
- Muttiah Muralitharan, the Sri Lankan spin bowler, is the highest wicket-taker in the Asia Cup, taking 24 wickets.
- In the T20 format of the Asia Cup, Virat Kohli has scored the most runs with 429 runs in 10 matches.