Cricket Australia (CA) expresses interest to host India-Pakistan bilateral series

New Delhi: Cricket Australia (CA) has expressed interest in hosting a bilateral series between India and Pakistan, should the BCCI and PCB mutually agree to matches between the two teams in future, say reports.

India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral series since 2012-13 and the two nations only meet at global ICC events such as World Cups and the Champions Trophy.

The two Asian nations will be in Australia at the same time this November as the CA announced its international schedule with Pakistan playing three ODI matches and three T20Is shortly before India arrive for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, starting from November 22.

According to a Sydney Morning Herald report, CA cricket operations manager Peter Roach said on Tuesday that the national body would love to be able to host a match between India and Pakistan and will continue to express interest to the boards of both countries.

“Going forward, we’re always interested in opportunities for matches and content that will engage our fans and it’s fair to say that every country in the world would love to see India and Pakistan compete in their country,” Roach said.

“We are on the record as saying that we’re one of those countries that have asked the question. There is no room in the schedules to do that at the moment but we’ll keep talking to them (about) any other opportunities that arise. But in this specific example, there are not going to be any changes to that schedule.” he added.

Tickets for a T20 World Cup showdown between rival nations at the MCG in 2022 sold out within five minutes, attracting over 90,000 fans. Similarly, a clash in Adelaide in 2015 was also highly sought after. This demand might have prompted suggestions that Australia could be an ideal neutral venue for future Pakistan-India matches.

CA chief executive Nick Hockley also reiterated desire to host the two Asian nations for a bilateral series.

“I think anyone that was here for the India-Pakistan game at the MCG, it will go down as one of the most memorable occasions, not just sporting occasions, that I’ve ever been to. We would love to host that if the opportunity arose. If we can play a role, we’d love to play a role.

“We’re so excited to host Pakistan. We’re so excited to host India. If we can help, that’s great. But I think in many ways, that’s a bilateral series. It’s really for others to make that happen,” he was quoted by ESPNCricinfo. IANS

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