Asia Cup 2025 meeting to go ahead as planned after BCCI reportedly makes U-turn

After much uncertainty and a reported initial boycott by the BCCI, it is now being said that the Indian cricket board has agreed to attend the Asian Cricket Council meeting virtually, where the Asia Cup 2025 could be finalised. read more

In a late twist, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has decided to attend the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Annual General Meeting (AGM), which will take place in Dhaka on July 24 and 25, after initially threatening to boycott the meeting over the venue selection. The ACC is currently chaired by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) head Mohsin Naqvi, and the BCCI was seen as unwilling to participate in a meeting in Bangladesh.

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While the ACC AGM is expected to take a final call on the Asia Cup 2025, the future of which has looked uncertain since the Pahalgam terror attack, BCCI reportedly did not want to attend a meeting in Dhaka due to worsening relations between India and Bangladesh. The BCCI also recently postponed Team India’s white-ball tour to Bangladesh from August 2025 to next year.

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BCCI to attend Asia Cup meeting virtually

It was also reported that the boards of Sri Lanka and Afghanistan were ready to boycott the Dhaka meeting in support of the BCCI, but in a late twist on Wednesday, the Indian cricket board decided to attend the ACC AGM, albeit virtually.

“Yes, we have decided to attend the meeting virtually,” a BCCI source told Hindustan Times. Another BCCI source confirmed the same to the newspaper The Hindu, “ BCCI will act as a big brother and attend the tournament virtually,” he said.

As per media reports, BCCI tried to make countries like Afghanistan and Oman skip the ACC AGM, which would have resulted in a l ack of a quorum at the meeting, but Naqvi ensured that wasn’t an issue after meeting other boards. This should be seen as a big win for the PCB as they have managed to bring together enough boards needed as per the ACC constitution for a meeting to be held legally.

As per a report in Cricbuzz, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi and Pakistan Super League (PSL) CEO Salman Naseer have already arrived in Dhaka for the meeting along with other ACC members. The officials from the Afghanistan board are expected to arrive on 24 July. The ACC AGM will start at 2 PM local time (1.30 PM IST) in Dhaka.

Asia Cup most likely to go ahead as planned

ACC AGM is likely to take a final decision on the Asia Cup 2025. The tournament schedule and other important details are expected to be confirmed during the meeting in Dhaka. The reserved window for the Asia Cup 2025 is 10 to 28 September. It is expected to be hosted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) despite India being the designated hosts.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chairman Aminul Islam has tried to stay away from the controversy, saying they are only playing the part of a host. “The ACC is an organisation that operates with five full members from Asia and 25 associate countries. The ACC asked us whether we wanted to host the AGM and we agreed to it. This is an ACC programme, and we will only provide logistical support,” he was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

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“We are in touch with the ACC, who is informing us who is coming and who is not, as we have to make arrangements for airport pick-ups, hotel bookings and other support.”

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