Indian cricket team (ANI Photo) New Delhi: If the BCCI decides its cricketers need to stay outside the official Asian Games hotels in Aichi-Nagoya, the board will have to take full responsibility for accommodation, food, transport and ensuring that its players reach the venue on time.

IOA CEO Raghuram Iyer, speaking to TOI, said the BCCI is free to make its own arrangements if the organisers’ hotels don’t suit its requirements, but the decision and the accompanying logistical responsibility would rest with the Board.

“BCCI CEO Hemang Amin got in touch with us (IOA), and we had a fruitful discussion.

They are contemplating sending an advance team to Japan to assess the facilities. The IOA is completely fine with that. Based on their assessment, they can decide whether they want to use the organisers’ facilities or make their own arrangements.

It is for the BCCI and the organisers to work out the best solution. For now, the Games organisers have a designated accommodation plan for both Indian teams. The men have been allotted the three-star APA Hotel Nagoya Ekimae, while the women have been assigned the four-star Meitetsu Grand Hotel, it’s been learnt.

Both properties possess the requisite amenities, though they are a grade below the five-star accommodation to which India’s cricketers are generally accustomed. The women, captained by Harmanpreet Kaur, face the first logistical test. They return from the Asia Cup in Dubai on Sept 13 and are scheduled to fly to Nagoya the following day.

The men, led by Shreyas Iyer, will travel later, leaving for Japan on Sept 21. With both teams having different arrival windows, the BCCI is now looking at the accommodation and logistics from its own perspective. The availability of suitable alternatives could be crucial.

Aichi-Nagoya is already under considerable accommodation pressure, with the number of athletes and coaches expected to rise to around 17,000 from an original planning figure of 15,000.

That arrangement, however, would not put the cricketers outside the Games system.

The BCCI would have to communicate its decision through the IOA to the organisers, and all Games-related security, accreditation and access protocols would continue to apply.

The separate stay would also have implications for anti-doping procedures. “The BCCI is taking care of its athletes, and sending an advance team is the right way to assess the facilities before making a decision. We are completely for the well-being of the athletes.