Would've been good if Asia Cup 2023 was held entirely in Pakistan, says Babar Azam ahead of Nepal tie

After a lot of wait, the Asia Cup 2023 edition is now underway. Babar Azam-led Pakistan have locked horns with Nepal in the opening game in Multan, Pakistan on Wednesday (August 30). The current edition is being held in the 50-over format for the ODI World Cup and is also taking place in two countries, for the first time ever, including Sri Lanka. The Islanders came into the picture after India's reluctance to travel to Pakistan, the original hosts, due to their strained political relations. On Tuesday (August 29), ahead of the Pakistan-Nepal clash, Men in Green captain Babar spoke about the hectic scheduling as all teams, barring India, are set to travel regularly within a short span of time.

'Unfortunately, nothing can be done about it'

Talking to the reporters before the match, Babar said, "If you ask me, it would have been good if the whole tournament would have been held in Pakistan, but unfortunately, nothing can be done about it," Babar said at the pre-tournament media conference. "As professionals, we are ready for any schedule that is given to us. There would be travelling as well as back-to-back games and we are ready for that."

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It is to be noted that Pakistan kickoff their campaign on Wednesday against Nepal in Multan and then will soon leave forSri Lanka the very next day as they face off with arch-rivals India on September 02 in Kandy. Within a day, they will be back in Lahore for their Super Four game (as qualification for the next stage very likely) on September 6 and will again land in the Island nation for their following gameon September 9.

Babar explained how Pakistan will deal with the hectic schedule amid regular travelling. In this regard, the 28-year-old said, "Our coaches and support staff have chalked out plans about how much we would utilise each player and also we have booked our flights in such a manner, that our travelling schedule gives enough time to rest.

At present, Pakistan will look for a big win over Nepal to kick off their Asia Cup campaign in style with their next outing versus Team India. Here's the No. 1 ranked ODI side's playing XI for the Nepal tie.

Pakistan playing XI for Nepal match

Babar Azam (C), Shadab Khan (vc), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf

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