By IANS
New Delhi : The Indian cricket board’s bid to earn more money has once again resulted in deferring of the jinxed 2008 Asia Cup, which was to be held in Pakistan in April-May.
This time the reason is that the Indian Premier League (IPL), a baby of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is clashing with the oft-postponed ninth edition of the Asia Cup in Pakistan.
“We are trying to find a slot for the Asia Cup. We have tried to find a slot for the tournament that is convenient for the other four countries,” BCCI president Sharad Pawar told reporters.
“For this, we have called a meeting of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) here next month. Tentatively, we want that the Asia Cup should be organised in June,” he said after a meeting of the BCCI office bearers here.
Pawar said cricket officials of Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh would be attending the meeting.
The IPL, to be held in April in India, is backed by the International Cricket Council and the boards of the 10 Test-playing countries. Some of the world’s top players have signed to play in the eight-team tournament comprising Twenty20 matches.
The Asia Cup was initially scheduled to be held in Pakistan in February 2006. But it was postponed and rescheduled in Pakistan April 29-May 12, 2008.
Now, the IPL, the world’s highest prize money tournament at $3 million, has forced yet another postponement of the premier continental tournament that was first organised in 1984 when India won the title in Sharjah.
Pakistan has never hosted the tournament. The country was scheduled to host it in 1993 but the tournament was cancelled.
Pawar also said the decisions taken at Tuesday’s meeting would be placed before a BCCI working committee meting Dec 16 for final approval.