A pitch for diplomacy

Can Pakistan get a home series without other cricketing countries visiting it, asks D Sampathkumar in the Hindu Business Line.Such a ‘fiction’ may be a practical possibility in India, where cricket and politics are closely intertwined and politicians become cricket administrators.

But there are complications. Not all of them, however, are cricket-related. Indeed, the cricket-related ones are the easiest to handle. For instance, the visiting Pakistani cricket team may well be given the rights to adjust the ground conditions to suit its team strength. So technically then, the pitch and the surrounding area of the ground are given out on a temporary lease to the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Does the Indian law allow it? My guess is, even if it does not explicitly prohibit it, it isn’t actually contemplated under it either.