Regular Indian players unlikely to feature in Asia XI vs World XI series due to international committments

A roller coaster of emotions awaits staunch supporters across the world as they are keenly waiting to enjoy the real taste of an extremely exciting ride for the next year’s captivating series between Asia XI and World XI. As the music blares out from the speakers, the exhibition series will be played next year with Bangladesh hosting two entertaining games and India hosting one.

There is a specific reason as to why Bangladesh is hosting the games. They are doing so to commemorate the birth centenary of their first Prime Minister identified as Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The two matches which are certain to keep the fans at the edge of their seats are scheduled to take place on March 18 and 21 respectively.

Just days after pink-ball Test affair became a huge success, Sourav Ganguly said that Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) would host an exhibition game between Asia XI and World XI at the new Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad. The new stadium is being constructed reportedly at a cost of Rs 700 crores.

The Stadium will be ready by February 2020. After completion, it will beat the humongous Melbourne Cricket Ground to become the biggest cricket stadium in the world with a maximum capacity of 1.10 lakh.

India scheduled to play against South Africa in March

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had already sought formal permission from India’s governing body BCCI to allow seven of the top Indian players to visit Bangladesh for the Asia XI vs World XI series. MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ravindra Jadeja are the names who are picked. The Asia XI will feature cricketers from teams like Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

“Yes, Bangladesh is scheduled to host two T20 Internationals between Asia XI and Rest of the World. We are in touch with BCCI and other cricket boards of the Asian region to allow their players to be part of these two games,” BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said last month.

As national duty comes ahead of anything else, Indian cricketers are unlikely to visit Bangladesh. It is going to be India’s test of tactical acumen as they will be playing ODI series against South Africa when the Asia XI vs World XI series kick-starts in Bangladesh. It is to be noted that the three-match ODI series comes to a close on March 18, the same day the intriguing series in Bangladesh starts.

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