While Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi have already expressed their disappointment, former Pakistan captain Younis Khan and former wicket keeper batter Kamran Akmal are the most recent members to do so.

Numerous former cricketers have voiced harsh criticism of Jay Shah, secretary of the BCCI and president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), for his recent announcement regarding India’s reservation from travelling to Pakistan for the Asia Cup 2023. Many Pakistani athletes who have played international cricket urged the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to keep its firm stance and not travel to India for the ICC men’s World Cup that will be held next year. Some have even decided not to attend the T20 World Cup match in Melbourne on Sunday.

While Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi have already expressed their disappointment, former Pakistan captain Younis Khan and former wicket keeper batter Kamran Akmal are the most recent members to do so.

On ARY News’, popular cricket talk show Har Lamha Purjosh, the pair discussed the subject. They were all in agreement that Pakistan should host the tournament even if India did not participate.

“I think Jay Shah should not have said that but since the bullet has been fired I would ask the PCB to take a firm stance on this issue, just like we did in the past [after New Zealand called off Pakistan’s tour at the eleventh hour] and as you know those teams have begun to tour the country, but if they [BCCI] decide to stick with their decision then it should not matter to us if the Indian team does not participate in Asia Cup and we should consider not travelling to India for the ODI World Cup the following year, nor we should agree to host Asia Cup at a neutral venue,”

said Younis.

Kamran, on the other hand, went a step further and asked for a complete boycott against India, including the upcoming clash at the T20 World Cup on Sunday.

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“I believe Jay Shah’s statement was unexpected, and since he attended the Pakistan-India game during this year’s Asia Cup, he should reserve politics for his opposition and avoid dragging it into sports, Asia Cup should only be hosted in Pakistan and if that does not happen then Pakistan should not play against India at any level, be it ICC events’ matches, Asia Cup matches, or even their match on October 23,”

the former wicket keeper stated

The PCB released an official statement in this regard on Wednesday. 

“The PCB has noted with surprise and disappointment of yesterday’s comments made by the ACC President Mr. Jay Shah with regards to shifting next year’s Asia Cup to a neutral venue. The comments were made without any discussion or consultation with the Board of the Asian Cricket Council or the Pakistan Cricket Board (event host) and without any thoughts towards their long-term consequences and implications,”

it said in a release.