Asia Cup 2023 Schedule, Format and Matches, Asia Cup 2023 Start Date, Asia Cup 2023 Venues, Asia Cup Squads and other details about Asia Cup 2023.
There has been so much in terms of rumours and heresy regarding the Asia Cup 2023 that, when the schedule for the tournament was finally announced on Wednesday (July 18), cricket fans simply breathed a sigh of relief.
This is due to the fact that there had been much squabbling about the tournament, from the original venue of Pakistan being under threat to the idea that it might not even happen to finally coming to a middle ground acceptance that was the ‘hybrid model’ proposed by former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi.
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But now the schedule has been announced by Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah, and fans can at long last build up anticipation for the tournament that is now a little over a month away.
In this article, we will take a look at everything you need to know about the Asia Cup 2023, from the venues, dates, schedule, squads as well as other frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding the tournament that pits Asia’s best teams against each other.
Asia Cup 2023 Format and Matches
As is the norm, the Asia Cup 2023 will be played in the format of the ICC World Cup that will be held in that given year. Since 2023 is the year of the ODI World Cup, the Asia Cup will see all matches played in the ODI format.
Sri Lanka come into this year’s edition as defending champions but will find it a tough task to retain the trophy they won in rather shocking circumstances last year.
This is because while Sri Lanka can compete in the shortest format of the game i.e. T20I cricket, they are less prolific in ODI cricket. In fact, they had to qualify for the ICC World Cup via the qualifiers.
The tournament will consist of two group stages, including a Super 4s that will determine which two teams play in the final. And a total of 13 matches will be played in the course of the tournament.
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Asia Cup 2023 Start Date
The tournament gets underway on August 30, with hosts Pakistan taking on qualifier Nepal in Lahore. Interestingly, this will be the only group game Pakistan play at home.
The final is set to take place in Colombo, and will be happening on September 17.
Asia Cup 2023 Schedule
| Match | Date | Venue |
| Pakistan vs Nepal | August 30 | Multan, Pakistan |
| Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka | August 31 | Kandy, Sri Lanka |
| Pakistan vs India | September 2 | Kandy, Sri Lanka |
| Bangladesh vs Afghanistan | September 3 | Lahore, Pakistan |
| India vs Nepal | September 4 | Kandy, Sri Lanka |
| Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka | September 5 | Lahore, Pakistan |
| A1 vs B2 | September 6 | Lahore, Pakistan |
| B1 vs B2 | September 9 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| A1 vs A2 | September 10 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| A2 vs B1 | September 12 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| A1 vs B1 | September 14 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| A2 vs B2 | September 15 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Super 4s – 1 vs 2 | September 17 | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
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It is worth noting that regardless of where India or Pakistan finish in their group, they will remain A1 and A2 respectively.
If either of them do not make it to the Super 4s, then Nepal will take the place of the team that does not qualify.
The same applies to the other group, where Sri Lanka will remain B1 and Bangladesh will remain B2 regardless of how it is they finish in their group.
Should either of the two sides fail to qualify out of their group then Afghanistan will take their position in the next round.
This is because the numbers do not denote where it is the team finishes in the group, but rather their seeding. Pakistan are seeded over India because they did better than them in the last Asia Cup.
Similarly, Sri Lanka are seeded over Bangladesh as they were the winners and will be the top seeds of their group by default.
Asia Cup 2023 Venues
The Asia Cup 2023 was meant to be hosted in Pakistan, but ACC president and BCCI secretary Jay Shah had cast doubts over that as early as 2022 when he proclaimed that India would not be traveling to Pakistan for the tournament.
This led to much back and forth as the two boards as well as even the governments got involved, before then-interim PCB chairman Najam Sethi suggesting a hybrid model that would see some games played in Pakistan with others being in neutral venues.
The ACC and BCCI were initially reluctant to accept this model but eventually came around and Sri Lanka was picked as the neutral venue to host the games that would not be taking place in Pakistan, including all of India’s matches.
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Interestingly, despite the tournament being a relatively short one by international standards, it still has 4 venues over 2 nations.
Pakistan will see Multan host one match – the opening game between Pakistan and Nepal. Two group stage games – Bangladesh vs Afghanistan and Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka – will take place, but in Lahore instead of Multan.
Lahore will also play host to one game of the Super 4s, which will be Pakistan’s first game of that leg of the tournament assuming they make it to the next round.
As for Sri Lanka, there are two venues earmarked for the tournament. Kandy will host the group stage games, whereas Colombo will see the knockout games played – including the final.
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Asia Cup 2023 Squads
The squads for the Asia Cup have not been announced yet, as most nations are currently involved in bilateral series and are therefore fully focused on that for the time being.
There’s also the fact that the start of the tournament is over a month away at this point in time, given it gets underway on August 30.
However, the nature of the tournament is such that one can be sure that full-strength teams from all the 6 nations will be taking part in the tournament.
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