The 2025 edition will be a T20 tournament and the 2027 one an ODI event, serving as precursors to the respective format’s World Cups

Edited PTI copy29-Jul-2024India will host the next edition of the Men’s Asia Cup cricket tournament in the T20 format in 2025 as a precursor to the T20 World Cup scheduled in the country in 2026, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) stated in its Invitation for Expression of Interest (IEOI).Since 2016, when the tournament was first played as a T20 event, the Asia Cup has been used as a dress rehearsal for the global event and played in the format in which the World Cup will be held.The 2023 edition, hosted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), was held in a ‘Hybrid Model’ as India refused to travel to the neighbouring country and played their matches in Sri Lanka.The 2027 Asia Cup will be held in the ODI format in Bangladesh as the 50-over World Cup is scheduled in South Africa in the same year.The T20 Asia Cup in India and the 50-over continental event in Bangladesh in 2027 will comprise 13 games each as there are 26 matches allocated in the said period.”‘Men’s Asia Cup Tournament’ means the biennial senior men’s cricket tournament organised and administered by the ACC involving designated Members, and shall include participation by the teams from Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and one Non Test playing Member of ACC selected through qualifying events,” the ACC stated in its IEOI statement.India are the defending Asia Cup champions, and have won three of the last four editions of the tournament. They beat Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in the final of last year’s 50-overs edition in Colombo.