Sharjah tourney throws Challenger series, camp out of gear

The matches are to be held for a noble cause but there is little doubt that the proposed Sharjah triseries featuring India, Bangladesh and Pakistan will cause a lot of disruption in Indian cricket.

In the first place, it was already decided to conduct the camp for the 25 probables selected for the series against Australia in two phases, from February 6 to 11 and 16 to 20. In between these dates, the Challenger Series was scheduled to be held from February 12 to 15. Both the tournament and the camp were to be held in Chennai.

The dates for the Sharjah tri series - February 8 to 11 - has thrown the entire programme out of gear. Both the camp and the Challenger tournament are now in doubt.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has already asked the selectors to meet in Mumbai on February 5 to select the team for the Sharjah competition. On the same day, the BCCI will meet to take a decision on the Challenger tournament and the camp. To be candid, the officials have several options but every one of them could turn out to be a thorny one.

Either the camp or the Challenger Series - if not both - is bound to be the casualty. As it is, the first leg of the camp from February 6 to 11 has been cancelled, according to Ashok Kumbhat, the secretary of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association. The Indian team can come back from Sharjah not before February 12 which means that the Challenger Series can commence only the following day. Which in turn also means that the second leg of the camp has to be put off by a day and can be held only from February 17 to 20. What a camp for four days can achieve is anyone's guess.

Moreover, the selectors have mixed the players around in the three teams, to be led by Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar. There are a few certainties or near certainties for Sharjah in all the three teams. So perhaps one option would be to juggle with the composition of the teams, so that the senior squad leaves for Sharjah and the India A and India B teams meet in the opening match of the Challenger. This could mean that the original schedule for the tournament - February 12 to 15 - can remain intact and the second leg of the camp can be held as originally planned - February 16 to 20.

Perhaps one more option the board can consider is to cancel the Chennai camp, go ahead with the Challenger, to start either on February 12 or 13 and hold a separate and longer camp at Mumbai, the venue of the first Test, following the Challenger tournament. The Test is to start on February 27. Here again there may be problems since some of the probables are bound to figure in the India A team, to play the tour opener against the Australians from February 17 to 19.

Of course the board can also cancel the Challenger Series and go ahead with the Chennai camp for about ten days following the Indian squad's return from Sharjah. That way, at least the camp will not really be affected. But the cancellation of the tournament too could lead to problems. First, the sponsors could raise a hue and cry. Secondly, the remaining part of the season is already chockfull and fitting in the Challenger could pose a major scheduling problem.

The confusing scenario that is bound to unfold has its genesis on Thursday when it was announced that the Asian Cricket Foundation would organise the series along with the Sharjah-based Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS). "All the three governments have agreed to the proposal," said an ACF official.

The series, which expects to raise a million dollars for quake relief, will comprise four one-day internationals - three league matches and the final - and will be telecast live throughout the world. This will also mark the first time that arch rivals India and Pakistan will meet on the cricketing field since the Asia Cup in Dhaka last May.

Citing political tensions, the Indian government has consistently refused to sanction cricket matches against Pakistan. But the proposed series was given the go-ahead since the entire income by way of television rights, sponsorships and gate receipts, will be handed to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund.

Pakistan, on their part, has decided to delay its departure for New Zealand by a few days and is now expected to fly out straight after the Sharjah event.