The future of the 2025 Asia Cup has been thrown into uncertainty as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), along with several other national boards, has decided to boycott the upcoming Asian Cricket Council (ACC) meeting if it takes place in Dhaka, Bangladesh as scheduled on July 24.
According to top BCCI sources cited by India Today, the Indian board has formally communicated its stance to both the ACC and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who currently heads the ACC. The primary reason behind the boycott threat is the ongoing political tension between India and Bangladesh, which BCCI officials believe makes Dhaka an unsuitable venue for high-level cricket diplomacy and planning.
The BCCI’s boycott is not an isolated move—several other member boards are also reportedly in agreement and may skip the meeting in solidarity with India, raising questions about whether the meeting will take place as planned and, more importantly, whether a consensus can be reached on the hosting and structure of the 2025 Asia Cup.
This marks the second consecutive year the Asia Cup is mired in political controversy. In 2023, the tournament had to be held in a hybrid model after India refused to travel to Pakistan due to political reasons, forcing matches to be split between Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
With Pakistan tentatively expected to host the 2025 edition, the stakes are high. The ACC meeting was expected to finalise the venue, schedule, and format of the tournament. However, if a significant number of member boards skip the session, deliberations may stall, further delaying planning for the event.
At a time when geopolitical tensions continue to spill over into sports, especially cricket, the situation once again highlights how regional politics is complicating multilateral tournament organization. A new venue for the ACC meeting—or a diplomatic breakthrough—may be necessary to break the impasse and safeguard the tournament’s future.
