Featuring five Asian countries, the tournament will be played from February 24 to March 6, with the World T20 running from March to April.
Bangladesh will host the Asia Cup cricket for the third time running in February and March despite recent security fears which prompted Australia to cancel a tour, the national cricket chief said.
At a meeting in Singapore this week, the Asian Cricket Council decided Bangladesh will hold the tournament, to be played in the Twenty20 format for the first time, just before the ICC World T20 in neighbouring India.
“Pakistan proposed that Bangladesh should host next year’s Asia Cup and everyone agreed,” Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan told reporters late Wednesday.
The BCCI secretary was a part of the Asian Cricket Council meeting in Singapore, where he proposed about India hosting the 2018 Asia Cup (50-over format) and the members
agreed.
“Since India would host World T20 next year, the Asia Cup T20 will serve as an ideal preparatory tournament for Asian nations. With international cricket not possible in Pakistan
and Sri Lanka will be in midst of monsoon, Bangladesh was the unanimous choice of the members,” Thakur said.
“The 2018 edition in India will be ODI format keeping 2019 World Cup in mind,” he stated.
Interestingly, major decisions were taken at the ACC meeting, an organisation that was about to shut shop on directives of ICC chairman N Srinivasan.
At the meeting, the four Asian Test nations — India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh — also decided to contribute 2 per cent of their annual income to ACC for development of cricket in emerging nations.
The members also agreed upon having an emerging nations One Day tournament in alternate odd years.
“The Asian Test nations like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh will send their A sides with three players mandatory from the senior side. The associate nations like Nepal, Afghanistan and Oman will play their first teams. This is an endeavour to make Asian bloc in cricket stronger. The more they will play against Test nations, they will become far more competitive,” the BCCI secretary said.
In another major development, Dharamsala has been proposed as a ‘Centre Of Excellence’ unit for ACC.
The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had given excellent feedback after they trained at HPCA ground after last year’s earthquake that rocked the Himalayan nation.
“The matter is up for proposal and will be discussed at BCCI AGM,” Thakur said.
Featuring five Asian countries, the tournament will be played from February 24 to March 6, with the World T20 running from March to April.
Test nations Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will get direct entry. Afghanistan, Oman, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates will play a qualifying tournament in November in the UAE for the fifth place.
Bangladesh also hosted the tournament in 2012 and 2014, along with 2000 and 1988.
Australia’s cricketers had been due to play a two-Test series in Bangladesh this month but the tour was scrapped after official Australian warnings that militants may attack Western interests.
Safety fears for foreigners have heightened in Muslim-majority Bangladesh after the recent murders of an Italian aid worker and a Japanese farmer which were claimed by the Islamic State group.
Bangladesh, which denies IS has a presence in the country, is desperate to avoid the fate of Pakistan which has had to host nearly all of its home matches at neutral venues since gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan team bus during a 2009 Test match in Lahore.