India to play Pakistan in Emerging Cup hosted in Bangladesh

Cricket fans around the world waiting for the mouthwatering clash between two of the most fierce rivals; India and Pakistan. The two sides are poised to play each other in the Champions Trophy in June but the neighbors are all set to meet each other on the cricket field in March as well.

The Asian Cricket Committee has authorized a One-Day International tournament where India will lock horns with not only Pakistan but also with their other Asian partners. But there is a twist to this as well, the Emerging Trophy, as it is known, is for the U-23 players. To make the event more interesting there is a rule that all the teams can have four national players in the team; regardless of their age.

The teams like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh would also send their U-23 sides while the Asian associate members like Afghanistan, UAE, Hong Kong and Nepal will also be a part of the tournament.

The tournament is to be played in Cox’s Bazaar in Bangladesh from 15th of March. It will be played for 11 days until 26th of the same month. MV Sridhar while talking to the Indian Express cleared the air by stating that it is a series between eight teams and it is not a bilateral series between India and Pakistan. He said: “Yes, India would be sending a team to the tournament. It’s an ACC tournament and so we would go there. This is not a bilateral India-Pakistan series, and so this is different.”

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Team India’s schedule is tight during March as they entertain Australia in the four-Test match Border-Gavaskar Trophy. There is a possibility that no national player might be available for the tournament but India will still look to capitalize on the opportunity. It is a good platform to test some of the out of favor national players. And all the teams will look to do the same.

This tournament will be a good exposure for the young guns of the countries participating in it. And if we consider the Associate nations it will be excellent for them as they will have some competitive matches under their belt as well.