[1]A continental compromise, spread irregularly over the last 26 seasons will see its 10th edition commence in this sleepy tourist town on Tuesday. The Asia Cup for long has been more a matter of convenience than a logical explanation to the already cramped international calendar.
Compromises have been made to accommodate the tournament. Bangladesh have split their tour of England while half of the Indian and Sri Lankan squads are busy jostling with immigration officials in Johannesburg. The Asian Cricket Council’s decision to do away with the non regular members is actually a breath of fresh air. It should help greatly in sustaining the quality. Batsmen swelling their averages against mediocre attacks is not a sound advertisement in hard times.
The top four teams from Asia could use this experience as a rehearsal for the World Cup, to be played in similar conditions in less than a year. India skipper M.S. Dhoni and his Lankan counterpart Kumar Sangakkara though had other views.
“We would like to stay in the present and focus on the tournament rather than think about the World Cup”, said Sangakkara and Dhoni agreed. Shahid Afridi however saw the event as important and one central to Pakistan’s preparations for the World Cup.
India and Sri Lanka have dominated the cup with four wins apiece. India missed the second edition while Pakistan missed the fourth due to political reasons. India last won the cup in 1994-95 under Mohammad Azharuddin. The hosts have finished on top thrice out of the last four editions.
Much sheen has been robbed by the absence of Sanath Jayasuriya and Sachin Tendulkar. The Lankan veteran has the highest aggregate in the tournament with 1,220 runs and is also third on the all-time wicket takers list with 22 scalps.
Tendulkar leads the pack for India with 799 runs and ironically is also the highest wicket taker with 17 wickets in 20 matches.
Given the following the game enjoys in the sub-continent, the Asia Cup has failed to stir spectator interest. Kapil Dev’s hat-trick, achieved during the 1990 final in Kolkata, does not evoke the same memory as his other famous deeds.
Syed Ashraful Huq, chief executive of the Asian Cricket Council, has been the man responsible for keeping the tournament going. A regular spot in the diary every two years will go a long way in building brand loyalty.
“It has been difficult to get the teams together for this tournament as they are busy with their international schedule. At the same time I am thankful to the four boards for agreeing to play at such short notice and the sponsors for making it happen,” said Ashraful.
The next 10 days will see seven ODIs adding to the plethora played around the world. Unless there is excitement induced it will only be another series that will go to the record books and not the one that revived interest. At a time where the format is quickly losing out to the snazzier T20, the action needs to get vibrant and it will be difficult for tired athletes to provide that.
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