Pakistan Will Pull Out if Asia Cup 2023 Gets Shifted Out of Pakistan: Ramiz Raja’s Open Threat to Team India

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja has been in the headlines for quite some time now courtesy of his controversial remarks.

Raja, who earlier threatened India to pull out of ODI World Cup 2023 if India fails to travel to Pakistan for Asia Cup 2023 has once again fired shots at BCCI.

The former Pakistan cricketer has said that the Men in Green won’t be participating in next year’s ODI World Cup in case Jay Shah, who is currently the president of the Asian Cricket Council and company, decides to change the venue of the continental tournament.

“It’s not as if we don’t have hosting rights and we’re pleading to host it. We won the rights fair and square. If India doesn’t come, they won’t come. If the Asia Cup gets taken away from Pakistan, maybe we’re the ones that pull out,”

Ramiz was quoted as saying on the sidelines of Pakistan vs England Test in Rawalpindi, ESPNcricinfo reported.

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“Why give it to us in the first place”: Ramiz Raja on Hosting Rights of Asia Cup 2023

Earlier, Jay Shah had dropped a bombshell shortly after BCCI’s annual general meeting saying that team India won’t be travelling to Pakistan for the Asia Cup. He also added that the tournament will be shifted to a neutral venue.

The move, however, hasn’t gone well with PCB as they lashed out at the Indian cricket board and threatened to boycott the ODI World Cup next year which will be played in India next year.

Raja further said that if India had issues regarding travelling to Pakistan, then they shouldn’t have been given the hosting rights to Pakistan in the first place.

“We’ve shown we can host great teams. I can understand issues relating to bilateral cricket, but the Asia Cup is a multi-nation tournament, almost as big as the World Cup for the Asian bloc,” he stated.

“Why give it to us in the first place and then make all those statements about India not travelling to Pakistan? I accept that India won’t come because the government won’t allow them to come – fine. But to take the Asia Cup away from the host on that basis isn’t right,” Ramiz added.

Pakistan have hosted England, Australia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and plenty of other teams in the last few years. Meanwhile, India last travelled to Pakistan was back in 2008 for the Asia Cup.

Pakistan, on the other hand, travelled to India in 2016 for the T20 World Cup. They haven’t played any bilateral series since 2012 but they have been facing each other in ICC events and Asia Cup.