BCCI turns down Afghanistan’s request to host T20 league in India

06/19/2019

BCCI has turned down the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB)’s request to host the Afghanistan Premier League (APL) in India. A BCCI official has said that it would not be appropriate to conduct another T20 league considering that the Indian Premier League (IPL) is to be held every year.

Indian cricket has had an immensely fruitful relationship with Afghanistan cricket. The two nations have often come together for the cause of developing the sport in the latter’s country. So, it came as a surprise when the BCCI turned down AFB’s request to host their T20 league in India.

“The ACB did request us to host its league in India but it would not be appropriate considering we have our own league (the IPL),” a BCCI official was quoted as saying by PTI.

The AFB had formally conveyed their request to BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and General Manager, Cricket Operations Saba Karim back in May.

The inaugural edition of the APL was played in Sharjah during the month of October, last year. Five teams participated in the event which attracted big names like Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, and Shahid Afridi among others. Balkh Legend, captained by Mohammed Nabi, won the first APL title. Afghan opener Mohammad Shahzad topped the batting charts with 344 runs in nine games while Sri Lanka’s Isuru Udana finished as the highest wicket-taker with 17 scalps in eight games.

Besides the request regarding APL, the AFB CEO Asadullah Khan had also requested for a third home ground in India, to which the BCCI has no issues. Dehradun and Greater Noida have been used as home grounds for Afghanistan over the last three or four years. But, Khan stated difficulty on hospitality grounds.

“Since Dehradun doesn’t have a five-star hotel, hosting teams is an issue. We would prefer it to be Lucknow,” Asadullah had said.

The BCCI is also considering a request to have 10 Afghan coaches to work closely with the Ranji Trophy teams during the Indian domestic season.

“It will be a great learning experience for our coaches as they will get to be with the best in the business,” the AFB CEO said.