ODIs in UAE in September could’ve led to player fatigue and injuries: Jay Shah reacts Najam Sethi’s suggestions for hosting Asia Cup | Cricket News

BCCI Secratary Jay Shah on Tuesday responded to former PCB President Najam Sethi’s recent comments in which he mentioned that during his tenure he’d suggested that the 2023 Asia Cup be staged in the UAE instead of Sri Lanka.
“The Asia Cup 2022 edition was played in the UAE in the T20 format,” Shah said in a statement. “It’s important to emphasize that the dynamics of a T20 tournament cannot be directly compared to those of a 100-over One-day format. In this context, ACC members received feedback from their respective high-performance teams, expressing concerns about playing One-day matches in the UAE in the month of September. Such a schedule could have potentially led to player fatigue and an increased risk of injuries, particularly right before the all-important ICC Cricket World Cup.”
Furthermore, he added that the decision to not host all the games of the ongoing continental tournament in Pakan was one that came in consensus with the stakeholders involved.
“All the full members, media rights holder, and in-stadia rights holders were initially hesitant to commit to hosting the entire tournament in Pakan. This reluctance stemmed from concerns related to the security and economic situation prevailing in the country,” Shah said.

“In my capacity as ACC President, I was committed to finding a viable and mutually agreeable solution. To this end, I had accepted the hybrid model that was proposed the Pakan Cricket Board (PCB) in collaboration with the ACC management. However, it’s important to note that the leadership of the PCB underwent several changes, and this resulted in some back-and-forth negotiations, particularly regarding crucial aspects such as tax exemption and insurance for matches,” he added.Most Read
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Earlier on Saturday, as the India-Pakan game in Pallekele was called off owing to rain, Najam Sethi took to his X account to write that while the ACC had denied hosting the Asia Cup this year in UAE owing to heat, “it was as hot when the Asia Cup was played there last time in Sep 2022 or when IPL was played there in April 2014 and Sep 2020. Politics over sport. Unforgivable!”
On Monday, Sethi would add that he had pleaded the ACC to host the entire tournament in Pakan. Following a denial, Sethi claims to have suggested the Asian cricket governing body to host five games in Pakan while the remaining be played in the UAE.

“When Mr Shah didn’t agree, a high level delegation of the Emirates Cricket Board flew to Mumbai to persuade BCCI to play the Asia Cup in UAE as in the past when two IPLs and one ACC ODI event was played there in the same weather conditions. BCCI refused to accept their request. Only Mr Shah can explain why these options were rejected and why Sri Lanka was accommodated against all reason, logic, and rationality,” Sethi would add in a tweet.