Afro-Asia Cup Revival: Virat Kohli, Babar Azam Could Play For Same Team

Cricket fans from the early 2000s era used to see a tournament called the Afro-Asia Cup. Combining teams from Asia and Africa allowed for a blend of the best cricket players on both continents. It was an interesting and entertaining idea, which was also enjoyed by the fans. Due to political tensions between India and Pakistan, the Afro-Asia Cup was discontinued. Now, there are reports which suggest that the cup might be revived and we might see the Indian and Pakistani players playing together as well. If it happens, we might see Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, Jasprit Bumrah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, etc playing together for the same team in the Afro-Asia Cup.

Today, we will see why these reports are speculated in the media, what are the possibilities, the history of the tournament, and much more. So let’s dive into it quickly.

What is the Afro-Asia Cup?

An Asian XI and an African XI played a series of charity cricket matches in the Afro-Asia Cup. They held the series twice, in 2005 and 2007, intending to use the proceeds from the matches for development in Asia and Africa.

For fans, the Afro-Asia Cup was an exciting chance to see their favorite cricketers join forces in mixed teams, leading to thrilling matchups and partnerships that otherwise wouldn’t have happened in international cricket. Star players from nations like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and Zimbabwe took part in the cup, structured in One Day Internationals (ODIs) format games.

REPORTS: Afro-Asia Cup to come back?

The cup was discontinued after 2007 due to political tensions between India and Pakistan. There have been discussions over the years about reviving it, but it didn’t happen. Now, some media reports suggest that there are talks about reviving the Afro-Asia Cup. Different cricketing boards mulling over the revival of this series/cup.

On December 1st, Jay Shah will formally take the role of International Cricket Council (ICC) Chairman. If everything goes well, talks about the tournament’s possible revival may ensue. The African Cricket Association (ACA) president, Samod Damodar also talks about the possibility of the tournament taking place again.

“It hurts me personally that the Afro-Asia Cup didn’t happen. Although the ACA did not garner enough momentum, it is currently being re-examined. I believe it was a lack of comprehension and a refusal to accept the idea. Our members are sorry about that. Africa has to push for it.” – Samod on Afro-Asia Cup (Quoted by us).

The ACC president also said cricket will break the gap between India and Pakistan, which happened due to the political tensions between the two countries. He also believes that the players are not antagonistic against each other, and would be up for it.

So this is the latest development regarding the Afro-Asia Cup revival. Now let’s see some history of this tournament/series.

When was the first time it happened?

The first Afro-Asia Cup happened in 2005. We saw some of the star players like Inzamam ul Haq, Kumar Sangakkara, Abdul Razzaq, Anil Kumble, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Shoaib Akhtar, etc in the Asia XI team. On the other hand, the African XI team consists of star players like Shaun Pollack, Graeme Smith, Tatenda Taibu, AB de Villiers, Collins Obuya, Dale Steyn, etc.

The three-match ODI series ended 1-1 with the last match has no result. African XI won the first ODI in a close encounter by 2 runs. Ashwell Prince scored 78 runs in the first inning, and Shaun Pollack’s 3-fer helped Africa XI to defend 198. Asia XI won the 2^nd game by 17 runs, thanks to Sanga’s 61 and Zaheer Khan’s 3 wickets.

Then, the Cup was again held in 2007. This time, it has 3-ODIs and a T20I. Asia XI won the ODI series 3-0 and also won the one-off T20I. Mahela Jayawardene becomes the Player of the Series.

The reason for discontinuation

Political tension between India and Pakistan led to the discontinuation of the series. According to reports, the tournament might have taken place in 2023 and nearly revived two years ago, but the ACA’s internal politics caused the cancellation of that plan.

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Conclusion

So this is all about the Afro-Asia Cup and its revival possibilities. Jay Shah, to be an ICC Chairman has so many things to look at like the Champions Trophy 2025 venue, the ICC T20 WC 2024 file and a loss to broadcaster, reviving cricket in Associate nations, and much more. Along with those agendas, the revival of the Afro-Asia Cup will also be on his priority list.

For supporters, a possible return would bring something new to the international cricket schedule, uniting the love of the game on two passionate continents.

Also, if it happens, we might see some of the best Asian players like Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, Jasprit Bumrah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shakib al Hasan, Litton Das, etc playing together in one team for Asia XI.

Also, some of the big players from the African continent like Aiden Markram, KG Rabada, Sikandar Raza, etc might feature together in the African XI side.