India to Skip Asia Cup 2025 Due to Tensions with Pakistan
New Delhi, May 19, 2025 – India has announced that it will neither host nor participate in the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, citing rising geopolitical and military tensions with Pakistan. This decision, confirmed on Monday, threatens to derail the entire tournament, which is scheduled for September this year.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after internal discussions, informed the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) that India would withdraw from all Asia Cup-related events this year. As a result, the Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup, set for June in Sri Lanka, has reportedly been canceled.
The Men’s Asia Cup, intended to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in a T20 format as a precursor to the 2026 T20 World Cup, is now uncertain. A final decision will be made at the upcoming ACC meeting chaired by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi. However, sources indicate that India has made its stance clear: there will be no participation and no hosting.
India’s decision reflects a continued policy of disengagement in cricketing ties with Pakistan amid ongoing diplomatic strains. This was evident during the 2023 Asia Cup, which adopted a hybrid hosting model, with all of India’s matches played in Sri Lanka despite Pakistan being the technical host.
India’s withdrawal poses a significant financial challenge to the tournament. With Indian sponsors and broadcasters, such as Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI), having invested an estimated USD 170 million over eight years, the event’s viability without India’s involvement is severely compromised.
The Asia Cup 2025 was expected to feature five teams—India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh—and was granted a 19-day window. Anticipation had built around high-profile India-Pakistan matches, which traditionally attract massive global audiences and significant advertising revenue.
Without India, the tournament’s future is in jeopardy, and cricketing relations in South Asia are likely to face further setbacks.
