Bangladesh to host next edition of Asia Cup early 2014

The dates of the Asia Cup ODI tournament have reportedly been finalised and the tournament will be held between February 24 and March 7 next year in Bangladesh, pending confirmation from Nimbus, which is the official broadcaster for the tournament.

The dates, along with other issues like venues, were discussed at the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) meeting in Chennai on Saturday, which was attended by BCCI president N Srinivasan, Sri Lankan Cricket secretary Nishanta Ranatuga, PCB chief operating officer Subhan Ahmed and ACC chief executive Syed Ashraful Huq.

According to the Daily Times, although the participation of India was in doubt, with the Asia Cup beginning too soon after the finish of the 2014 New Zealand tour as per the original schedules, a source said that India has confirmed their participation as the BCCI worked out a revised itinerary for the New Zealand tour.

Although the report mentioned that rumours have arisen about Nimbus filing for bankruptcy, the source expressed confidence that Nimbus would not pull out given that it has already paid the first installment of the bank guarantee, although he added that they would have to approach another broadcaster if Nimbus fails to comply with the cut-off date.

The ACC was forced to shift the venue from original hosts India to Bangladesh after India said that it was unable to organise the tournament due to a packed international calendar, the report added.