A major dispute is unfolding between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over the venue of the upcoming Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Annual General Meeting (AGM), casting a shadow over the future of the Asia Cup 2025, set to be held in the UAE from September 10 to 28.
The BCCI is reportedly considering boycotting the AGM, scheduled for July 24–25 in Dhaka, citing political tensions and opposition to the location. Backed by Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, the BCCI has demanded that the meeting be shifted to a neutral venue. The situation raises questions about the legality of the AGM, as quorum rules require at least three permanent Test-playing members to be present, which now seems unlikely.
Tensions Rise Over Dhaka Venue
The BCCI’s position aligns with ongoing diplomatic friction between India and Pakistan. According to the ACC constitution, a valid quorum also requires 10 full or Associate member nations. Still, participation from many of them — such as Nepal, the UAE, Singapore, Thailand, and Kuwait — remains uncertain.
The controversy centres on Mohsin Naqvi, PCB chairman and current ACC president, who has refused to consider a neutral venue. Naqvi skipped the recent ICC Annual Conference in Singapore and instead travelled to Kabul, seeking support from the Afghanistan government. However, as of July 21, Afghanistan Cricket Board officials reportedly reassured the Indian bloc of their non-participation in the Dhaka event.
“𝑰𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒂 𝒈𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂 𝑩𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝑩𝒐𝒂𝒓𝒅 (𝑩𝑪𝑩) 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒓. “𝑨𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒚… 𝑯𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏, 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔.”
Another source revealed internal pressure within the BCB to cancel the meeting.
“𝑩𝒖𝒍𝒃𝒖𝒍 (𝑨𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒍) 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈… 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒌.”
Possible Impact on the Asia Cup 2025
The implications of the venue dispute may extend to the Asia Cup, with the BCCI potentially withdrawing from the tournament if the AGM proceeds in Dhaka. Meanwhile, the PCB and Naqvi remain firm in their decision to continue with the scheduled meeting.
As the BCCI is the designated host of the Asia Cup, Pakistan’s absence may not pose major logistical issues, but it could result in commercial losses for the ACC. The controversy also echoes the recent incident in Birmingham, where Indian legends refused to face Pakistan in a legends match due to Shahid Afridi’s involvement.
With several factors at play, the fate of the ACC AGM and Asia Cup 2025 may hinge on how discussions and decisions unfold in Dhaka in the coming days.
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