Clarke muddies waters over winter itinerary

England's winter itinerary remains shrouded in confusion after the ECB chairman, Giles Clarke, appeared to confirm the UAE and Sri Lanka as the venues for England's forthcoming ODI and Test series against Pakistan, only for John Carr, the ECB's director of cricket operations, to suggest his assessment "might not be entirely accurate".

Speaking on BBC Test Match Special, Clarke stated that the UAE had been chosen to host the five-match one-day series, with two Tests against Pakistan set to follow in Sri Lanka after Christmas. However, a working draft from the ECB shows plans to play Pakistan in January and February, possibly over three Tests and five ODIs.

Meanwhile, a senior PCB official also told ESPNcricinfo "that they have not confirmed this schedule, neither the venue nor the break up."

If Clarke's schedule had proved right it would have meant a baptism of fire for Alastair Cook's one-day captaincy, with England set to play ten ODIs in the space of six weeks against India and Pakistan in October and November.

On Saturday, the BCCI confirmed the venues for England's one-day campaign, with matches scheduled for the major centres of Mumbai, Mohali, Hyderabad, Delhi and Kolkata, which will also be hosting a one-off Twenty20. Prior to that, England also expect to play two extra Twenty20 matches against West Indies in late September, which had to be arranged to compensate their host broadcaster, Sky, for the collapse of the Stanford Super Series in 2008.

"We are in discussions with the West Indies. There are several separate issues here," Clarke told the BBC. "We have a contractual commitment to Sky and BBC. We have said we are interested in more preparation for the Twenty20 World Cup. The new captain would benefit from more opportunity to captain."

Clarke also claimed the matches would help the cash-strapped West Indies Cricket Board, with a suggestion that the matches would become an annual event. "There is the economic situation in the West Indies," he added. "It is important to try to redress the balance economically of their game. It is important West Indies cricket is financially successful.

"I'm not looking at it as two games, but more than that. We want to attract the the Caribbean community in this country back into cricket grounds. We are not looking at these games as vast money-spinners for English cricket."

A schedule similar to the one outlined by Clarke would enable England to complete their pre-Christmas obligations by mid-November, before flying to Colombo early next year, where Clarke suggested they would play a total of three ODIs and four Tests in Sri Lanka, two against Pakistan and two against Sri Lanka but the exact numbers are still to be confirmed.

"Before Christmas we aim to be playing some ODIs - five - against Pakistan in UAE," he said. "Then we will look to go to Sri Lanka, probably for two Tests and three ODIs in March, and we want to play two Tests against Pakistan - possibly in Sri Lanka - before then."

However, Carr told ESPNcricinfo that "a clarification was necessary".