Will India and Pakistan play bilateral series Down Under? Cricket Australia chief executive has his say | Sporting News Australia

Cricket Australia (CA) has shown interest in hosting a bilateral series between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in Australia.

The two countries haven’t played a bilateral series since 2012-13.  Since then, they have only faced each other in global ICC events. 

Will Australia host India vs Pakistan bilateral series?

Nick Hockley, CA’s chief executive, expressed his willingness to facilitate this series. “If we can play a role in helping and facilitating the India vs Pakistan bilateral series, we would be more than happy to do so,” Hockley told The Indian Express during a media interaction.

In the 2024 T20 World Cup, India and Pakistan played a thrilling match in New York, which India won by six runs. The Indian team, led by Rohit Sharma, went on to win the tournament, while Pakistan, led by Babar Azam, was knocked out in the group stage.

After the 2022 T20 World Cup, where India and Pakistan played a last-ball thriller at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in front of 90,293 fans, there has been interest from the Melbourne Cricket Club and the Victorian government to host bilateral matches at the MCG. Hockley noted that although no formal discussions have taken place, CA is open to hosting the series.

More: ‘Five matches and you are out’ – Rashid Latif issues ultimatum to Babar Azam as he cites Rohit Sharma’s example

What did Nick Hockley say on the future of ODIs?

Hockley also discussed the future of ODI cricket. He highlighted the need for bilateral series to have meaningful contests to keep the format relevant. “The ODI World Cup which India hosted last year was fantastic. The ten-team format, where every game counts, is excellent,” he said. 

He highlighted the importance of having consequences for each series, similar to the World Test Championship, to maintain interest in the white-ball format. Hockley stated that Australia values all three formats of the game and wants bilateral series to have implications for World Cup qualifications.