ARTICLE: Asia Cup in Doubt Again (F.Hashmey) - Sep 1993

Asia Cup In Doubt Again -  Fawad  Hashmey  (Pakistani  Cricketer,
Sept, 1993)

  The Asia Cricket Cup, which is supposed to take place every two
years among the four sub-continental countries, has fallen victim
to mutual distrust and recrimination.  Since  the  Asian  Cricket
Conference (ACC) was founded in 1982-83, the competition has been
held only four times.  The last time the tournament was organized
was in 1990-91 in India when India beat Sri Lanka to win the com-
petition.
  Since then the issue had been hanging fine.  Pakistan, surpris-
ingly,  remains  the only country which has so far failed to hold
the tournament, despite three attempts in  the  past.   The  Cup,
without its principal characters like India and Pakistan, is just
worthless and loses all competitiveness if either  of  them  opts
out.  This has happened frequently in the past.
  When the tournament was staged in India, Pakistan  withdrew  on
political  grounds  while the same reason forced India out of the
competition when organized by Sri Lanka.  Interestingly, the com-
petition  has  had one hundred per cent participation only on two
occasions.  That was at the time of the inaugural  tournament  in
Sharjah in 1983-84 and then in Bangladesh in 1988-89.
  After 1988, it had been Pakistan's turn to stage the  show  but
the  BCCP  has been unable to do so.  The Board's attempts on the
past three occasions had been nullified by the last-minute  with-
drawal  of  India  from  the competition primarily on the grounds
that the political situation in Pakistan posed security  problems
for the Indian team.
  The fifth edition of the Cup is scheduled to be held in  Pakis-
tan  in December this year and once again the question of India's
participation has raised doubts about  the  tournament.   India's
inclusion  has been tied with the projected tour of India by Pak-
istan for a short three-Test series in October.  The Indians feel
that  if their western neighbors cannot undertake the tour, there
is no point in visiting Pakistan for the Asia Cup.
  Nevertheless, the BCCP has decided to go ahead  with  the  Asia
Cup  even  if India does not turn up for the event.  Shahid Rafi,
the BCCP secretary, in a recent interview  stated  that  Pakistan
would go ahead with the competition regardless of the presence of
India. "It is our moral obligation to stage the  event  as  every
member of the ACC has organized the competition but us.  But this
time we are all set to host the event," he stated.
  The absence of India will certainly  devalue  the  event  as  a
Pakistan-India  clash will be the highlight of the tournament and
attract the maximum number of  spectators.   The  BCCP  secretary
seems to ignore that important factor.  He says the Board is wil-
ling to sustain that financial loss which according  to  him  was
secondary  as  compared  with  the  respect and reputation of the
country.
  Actually the fate fo the tournament hinges on the permission by
the  Government,  specifically,  the  Ministry of Foreign Affairs
whose clearance is necessary for Pakistan to first undertake  the
tour  of India.  The Board has aleady writtenn to the Sports Min-
istry for forwarding the case to the MFA.  It seems quite unlike-
ly that any decision in this regard could be taken before the Oc-
tober general elections.
  The question of involving the Foreign Office appears quite baf-
fling.   Whether  the  FO is consulted by the BCCP on tours other
than to India is a matter of conjecture.  Such a  scenario  as  a
matter of fact is unlikely, it is wise to suggest that the matter
should be sorted out between the two Boards rather than involving
the concerned Ministries in either country.
  The BCCP is an independent body headed by no less a person than
the  Chief  Justice of Pakistan.  Surely a person of his standing
must be having good contacts at the higher levels of  Government.
Even the secretary is a person of no less importance.  Both could
easily take up the issue with the FO at the  personal  level  and
sort  it out and remove the misgivings and apprehensions once and
for all.
  Tackling the problem in a bureacratic way will in no  way  help
to  resolve  the  issue.  Better still, the two Boards should get
together and find  a  lasting  solution.   If  the  Indian  Board
guarantees security of the Pakistani team, there is no reason why
the team should not go ahead with the tour.
  In July, the Indian football team came to Lahore to  take  part
in  the SAARC Gold Cup Tournament.  Their visit hardly raised any
eyebrows and the event went off smoothly.  Large  crowds  watched
the  Indians in action but nothing unpleasant happened.  Pakistan
and India need such kind of frequent sporting contacts  to  raise
the  standard  of their sports.  This would also go a long way in
helping to diffuse the stormy political relations between the two
neighboring countries.

 Contributed by Shash (sshah@*.acns.nwu.edu)