PCB hopes to release itinerary within a week

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) hopes that it would be able to release the itinerary of India's tour to Pakistan in the coming week. The BCCI had earlier announced that the Indian team would arrive in Pakistan on March 1 for a three-Test and five one-day internationals. A spokesman of the PCB said, "Now that we know the exact number of matches, we are in a position to send the proposed dates of the matches and the venues to BCCI by Monday. We hope that India will send us the approval on the dates and venues of the matches by the week-end."

He added, "Frankly speaking we have heard the confirmation of the tour on television as when we closed offices on Saturday evening, we had received no confirmation. Nevertheless, we had sent them a revised schedule of three Tests and five one-day internationals on Saturday and we presume that its on the basis of that programme that the BCCI has confirmed the tour."

The PCB had initially sent an itinerary comprising three Tests and seven one-day internationals. According to the tentative itinerary, the tour was to be held between February 26 and April 19. The revised schedule also includes a three-day tour opener which will be the only warm-up game. The board spokesman said the PCB was committed to organize matches at all the major Test centres. "The BCCI has laid no pre-tour conditions and have expressed complete satisfaction over security which is great encouragement for the country as well as the PCB. It is premature to say which cities will host which matches but what is confirmed is that we will allot matches to all the major Test centres who fulfill the International Cricket Council (ICC) requirements. It is expected that the Tests will be played first and the one-dayers will be played in the second half of the tour."

The spokesman also said that the board was considering India's tour as the biggest cricketing show in Pakistan since the 1996 World Cup. "It is a mega series, a series the world has been waiting for. The PCB is committed and determined to make it a huge success. The Indian team will be welcomed with open arms not only by the cricket board but also by the people of Pakistan who are known for their hospitality. The PCB is more delighted that the announcement of the series has come at a time when the SAARC Summit is being held at Islamabad. The PCB is optimistic that it would also be able to play its role in bringing the people of the two countries closer thus normalizing relationships.

The spokesman said that the preparations for the series will commence in full swing and the related announcements will be made accordingly.