India's tour of Pakistan pushed back

India's tour of Pakistan in 2006 has been rescheduled with the first Test starting on January 14 instead of January 5.

Shaharyar Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, said that the schedule had been adjusted following requests by the Indian board. "However, the finalisation of Karachi where we have proposed a test and one-dayer is subject to approval from the Indian government," Shaharyar told Reuters. "All sensitive venues are always cleared at the government level."

India were supposed to start their tour with a practice match at Lahore on January 2 which will now be played on January 7. The ODIs will be held between February 6-20 at Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Multan and Karachi.

India's new itinerary

Jan 6: Indian team arrives in Lahore
Jan 7-9: Three-day warm-up game in Lahore
Jan 14-18: First Test in Lahore
Jan 22-26: Second Test in Faisalabad
Jan 30 to Feb 3: Third Test in Karachi