12-18-2008, 11:40 PM
<b>Pakistan cricket suffers setback as India calls off tour</b>
LAHORE : <b>Pakistan cricket was jolted Thursday when the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) called off its cricket teamâs tour of Pakistan early next year,</b> following a directive from the government that it was not feasible âin the prevailing circumstances.â The series was in doubt following deterioration of relations between the two countries, a fallout of the Mumbai terrorist attacks which India alleges had links to elements in Pakistan.
<b>The decision to withdraw from the tour will raise concerns over the 2011 World Cup to be staged jointly by India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Pakistanâs chances of hosting the postponed ICC Champions Trophy next year have also been hit hard as their status as the hosts depended on a security review that was to be conducted during Indiaâs visit.</b>
âThe PCB today received an email from the BCCI which officially conveyed that its cricket team will not visit Pakistan to undertake their scheduled tour under the ICC Future Tour Programme. In his message, BCCI president Shashank Manohar said the government has refused to grant permission to the Indian cricket team to tour Pakistan in the prevailing circumstances,â a spokesman for the PCB told reporters at the Gaddafi Stadium here yesterday. He said India had said they canât play the series in the existing conditions and when things improve they would discuss it further. The Indian government directive does not come as a surprise, with public opinion in India, as well as that of former cricketers, administrators and politicians, largely against the tour. A series of Indian newspaper reports quoted government sources as saying the tour would be called off and, last week, Indiaâs sports minister MS Gill said he was not in favour of the team travelling to Pakistan.
The PCB official called the decision of the Indian government disappointing. âIt is disappointing for us but we were expecting this. We still maintain sports should not be mixed with politics. <b>We believe cricket can help improve relations between the two nations. ]Pakistan have gone without Test cricket for more then a year now and we are desperate to have international cricket at home.â</b> He said Pakistan-India was always a major series. India have toured many times since 2004 so it is disappointing that such a major team, with so many superstars, would not be coming. <b>There had been talk of the series being possibly played at a neutral venue in the Middle East, but that scenario has also been ruled out. âRight now, there is no cricket between the two at neutral venues or anywhere.</b> We are still on normal terms with the BCCI. This is a decision that was neither in our hands nor theirs,â he maintained.
Political tensions have forced the cancellation of previous series between the neighbours. In 2004, India toured Pakistan for a full series for the first time in almost 15 years following a thaw in tensions. The Indians went on to clinch their first Test-series win on Pakistan soil. In 2006, led by Rahul Dravid, the Indian team again visited Pakistan to play three Test matches and five ODIs. This was Indiaâs seventh tour of Pakistan since 1954. Pakistan won the Test series 1-0, with a 341-run victory in Karachi, while the first and the second Tests played in Lahore and Faisalabad ended in draws. However, the hosts were unable to maintain the winning run in the ODIs: having won the first tie out of five, Pakistan lost the remaining four against a comparatively young Indian side. Pakistan have toured India twice: 2005 and 2007. <b>The PCB last month signed a five-year, $140.5 million television deal with the Gulf-based Taj Entertainment Network, but it includes a clause, which stipulates that if a series is cancelled, nothing will be paid.</b>
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