According to a report by InsideSport, senior officials of the Board of Control of Cricket (BCCI) have confirmed that the schedule for the ODI World Cup 2023 will be released in the following 48 hours. The International Cricket Council (ICC) is currently conducting meetings to finalize the last details. Pakistan has declined to play its matches at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, and Chennai is expected to be the next venue for the highly anticipated India versus Pakistan faceoff.
“We are meeting with ICC officials tomorrow to discuss the fine details of the schedule. Once that is done, we will release it to you. By Monday, we should have the final schedule,” said a senior BCCI official, according to InsideSport.
Besides Chennai, Pakistan is expected to play its other matches at the Bengaluru and Kolkata Stadiums. If Pakistan qualifies for the semi-finals or finals of the ODI World Cup 2023, it will have to play at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
The delay in announcing the ODI World Cup 2023 schedule is due to several technical factors, especially a contentious issue between India and Pakistan. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has threatened that if India does not visit Pakistan for the Asia Cup 2023 or ICC Champions Trophy 2023, the Pakistan cricket team will not travel to India for the ODI World Cup 2023.
Recent reports suggest that an agreement has been reached regarding the Asia Cup 2023, and while Pakistan will host four matches of the tournament, the remaining nine matches, including India versus Pakistan, will be played in Sri Lanka.
ICC Chief Greg Barclay and CEO Geoff Allardice also visited Pakistan recently to obtain guarantees that the country will participate in the ODI World Cup 2023.