Virat Kohli congratulates Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan after the T20 World Cup 2021 match, Dubai, October 24, 2024. — AFP
The revival of Afro-Asia Cup — a sequence of white-ball matches between Asia XI and Africa XI — is on the playing cards, the Africa Cricket Affiliation (ACA) confirmed.
There have been solely two editions of the match, held in 2005 and 2007 respectively. In 2005, the three-match ODI sequence was shared 1-1 after a rained-out remaining recreation, and in 2007, the Asia XI received all three matches.
The third version was deliberate to be held in Kenya in 2009 however was finally scrapped. Nevertheless, after almost 20 years, there’s a probability for the match to make its long-awaited return.
Throughout an ACA’s annual normal assembly, a six-person interim committee was appointed to revamp the organisation and likewise to extend aggressive alternatives for gamers throughout the continent.
One of many most important targets of the interim committee is to determine partnerships with cricketing our bodies just like the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and to discover cross-continental initiatives together with the Afro-Asia Cup.
If the match will get revamped, cricket followers could get to see cricketers from Pakistan and India that includes in the identical staff.
Talking to journalists, ACA Interim chief Tavengwa Mukuhlani highlighted the monetary significance of the match earlier than sharing that he had discussions together with his ACC counterparts and likewise with the African contingents, who’re longing for the revival of the match.
“The Afro-Asia Cup, apart from the cricket, brings the much-needed financial input to the organisation, and the appetite is huge from both ends,” Mukuhlani stated.
“We have had conversations with our counterparts within the Asia Cricket Council, and obviously our African contingents, they want the Afro-Asia Cup to be revived,” he added.
India and Pakistan haven’t performed bilateral sequence lately as a result of political tensions and have solely confronted off in Worldwide Cricket Council (ICC) and ACC tournaments.
