Daily Times

LAHORE: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has confirmed the Indian men’s cricket team’s participation in the Asian Games, marking their debut in the mega regional sports event. Following the development, the men’s side will join their female counterparts in the T20 format. However, a conflict has surfaced due to the dates of the Asian Games, which coincide with the ICC Cricket World Cup slated to be held in India this year. Therefore, according to Indian media reports, the men’s team participating in the tournament will comprise its B squad, and no star cricketer will be present in any team at the Asian Games.

The Asian Games are scheduled in Hangzhou, China, from September 23 to October 8, while the World Cup is slated to occur from October 5 to November 19. Additionally, teams will have to participate in warm-up matches. The BCCI will submit its player list to the Indian Olympic Association by June 30. “We have entries in all sports except one – cricket (team) isn’t going. They said they are preoccupied. We sent around 3-4 emails to them but when we had to send entries to the organisers, they said they won’t go,” India’s chef de mission for the Asian Games, Bhupender Bajwa, told an Indian media outlet earlier. Meanwhile, cricket – included in the tournament in 2010 and 2014 but not in 2018 – has now been included in the Hangzhou Games. The sports event was to be held in China last year but was postponed due to COVID-19 restrictions.

This is not the first time that the BCCI has fielded two of its national teams. Earlier in 1998, the board sent one team to participate in the Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games and another to compete against Pakistan for the Sahara Cup. Similarly, cricketer Shikhar Dhawan led a second-string team in Sri Lanka in 2021, while Virat Kohli captained a team in England. Despite repeated requests, the board had previously refused participation in the Asian Games, stating it was preoccupied.