Dubai: Asia Cup Twenty20 is all set to move out of Sri Lanka after the country informed the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Board that they will not be in a position to host the Asia Cup Twenty20 due to the currently political situation.
“Sri Lankan cricket has conveyed that due to the existing political and economic situation in their country specially where foreign exchange is concerned it is not an ideal situation for them to host such a mega-event of six teams in the island,” PTI reported quoting an unnamed ACC source, leaving UAE as the only other choice that was shortlisted earlier.
The development comes after Sri Lankan Cricket (SLC) recently postponed the third edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) due to the ongoing crisis. The official stated that the SLC officials conveyed that they would like to host the tournament, to be held from August 27 to September 11, in the UAE or some other country.
Replacement venue
The official also added that the ACC is likely to make an announcement in the next few days, given the Asia Cup is slated to be held in August and September this year before the T20 World Cup in Australia.
“UAE is not the final replacement venue, it could be some other country, even India as the ACC, Sri Lanka cricket will first have to talk with Emirates Cricket Board officials to get final approval for the event,” the official said.
The UAE, arguably the sporting capital of the world, has been hosting many major events, especially in cricket, like the Twenty20 World Cup and the Indian Premier League apart from bilateral series for several countries.
