ODI World Cup 2023: Pakistan wary of playing Afghanistan in spin-friendly Chennai, Australia in Bengaluru
By Team Newsable | First Published Jun 19, 2023, 2:54 PM ISTPakistan is now anticipated to fly to India for the World Cup 2023 in October-November as the standoff over the holding of the Asia Cup has been resolved.
The Pakistan cricket squad reportedly does not feel "comfortable" taking on certain of the other teams at particular locations during the ODI World Cup 2023 in India, such as Australia in Bengaluru and Afghanistan in Chennai.
Pakistan is now anticipated to fly to India for the World Cup 2023 in October-November as the standoff over the holding of the Asia Cup has been resolved. The eagerly anticipated match between India and Pakistan is anticipated to take place on October 15 in Ahmedabad.
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was one of the member bodies that the International Cricket Council (ICC) consulted before announcing the World Cup schedule.
According to a PTI report, the duty of approving the sites where Pakistan's matches for the 50-over mega event will take place has been assigned to the board's statistics, analytics, and team planning experts.
Quoting a source, the report added that the PCB forwarded the team's tentative schedule to the selectors and experts, some of whom don't seem to be happy with the Pakistani team's planned games and locations, such as their reservations about Pakistan facing Afghanistan in Chennai and Australia in Bengaluru.
Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad, who excelled for Gujarat Titans in the 2023 Indian Premier League, would be opponents for Afghanistan in Chennai, a spin-friendly venue. It is difficult to comprehend why Pakistan would have reservations facing Australia at the Chinnaswamy Stadium because the conditions there are often favourable for batting.
The PCB source claimed that because Chennai had historically and statistically been a venue that suited spinners and selectors who are also members of the team management, they had asked the board not to accept it as the site for the game against Afghanistan.
According to the report, PCB is likely to urge the ICC/BCCI to rearrange Pakistan's games so that the squad can face Australia in Chennai and Afghanistan in Bengaluru.
The report quoted a BCCI source stating that it is standard procedure for the ICC to consult with members over suggested itineraries and that there must be a compelling justification for changing the venues.
"A member board can push for a venue change due to safety reasons like Pakistan did in 2016 when they travelled India for the T20 World Cup. If you start expressing reservations over a venue as per your team's strengths and weaknesses on the field, then it becomes very tough to finalise the schedule. So unless there is a strong enough reason, no changes are made as far as the venues are concerned," said BCCI source to PTI referring to the Indo-Pak contest in 2016 when the game was shifted to Kolkata from Dharamsala.
Last month, the PCB unveiled a revamped national selection committee that included Mickey Arthur, director of the national men's squad, and Grant Bradburn as well as Hassan Cheema, manager of analytics and team strategy for the national side.
Chief Selector Haroon Rasheed has stated that the selectors will extensively rely on statistics and analytics to establish a team plan before any match in an effort to adapt to the demands of modern cricket.
When asked if Pakistan would be willing to play their championship game against India in Ahmedabad, the PCB reportedly noted that it had been more or less decided upon but that the government will make the final decision.
The first two qualifying games for the Pakistani squad are scheduled for October 6 and 12 in Hyderabad.
Pakistan is also anticipated to play in Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad, among other locations.
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