BCCI clarifies on withdrawal from Singapore tourney

The secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) JY Lele has denied media reports that the board had refused the invitation to play in the Singapore Tri-nation series in August in view of the on-going inquiry into the match-fixing scandal by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Lele, while speaking to an Indian news agency in Baroda, said ``the invitation from the Singapore Cricket Association was rejected because of the board's decision to take part only in events listed in the original ICC calendar and not for any other reason.''

The Board secretary's clarification come in the wake of media speculation that India had ruled out participation in the Singapore tournament due to other factors also like the BCCI's proposed restriction on taking part in tourneys in off-shore venues organised by non-Test playing countries and the general restriction on the number of one day matches played by India during the calender year.

The BCCI had officially announced on June 9 that the Indian team would not be participating in the tournament which was scheduled to be held from August 20 to 27. According to the original schedule India were pitted against South Africa and New Zealand. There was also speculation that Pakistan might be the probable replacement for India. Pakistan has since agreed to take part, according to Rakibul Hassan, an official of the PCB.

Meanwhile, the secretary of the Singapore Cricket Association (SCA) Anil Kalaver said ``India committed itself to play in Singapore a year ago and their late withdrawal is very disappointing.'' He however admitted that without India, it would be hard to organise a cricket event in Singapore as the team attracts a lot of sponsorship.