Dates, venues uncertain
Pakistan's historic tour of India threatened
Posted: Monday January 11, 1999 02:37 PM
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India and Pakistan have in recent years faced each other in a neutral country Ben Radford/Allsport |
NEW DELHI, India (AP) -- Weeks before Pakistan begins its first cricket tour of arch rival India in 12 years, organizers are still not sure where and when the first ball will be bowled -- or whether it will be bowled at all.
The Hindu right-wing Shiv Sena party has vowed to do "everything" to stop the cricket matches against Pakistan, with which it demands New Delhi sever all links. Its members dug up the pitch of the New Delhi stadium where the first test match is scheduled to begin January 28.
Shaken by the threats, officials of the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Monday seemed considering a change in the venue of the first match.
Press Trust of India quoted unnamed BCCI sources as saying the first test would now be held in the southern Indian city of Madras, where the second match was originally scheduled. New Delhi will now host the second test from February 4, the officials were quoted as saying.
But J.Y. Lele, BCCI secretary, denied there was any change in the original schedule, the news agency added.
Meanwhile a member of the Pakistan Cricket Board landed in New Delhi Monday to speak to Indian sports and Interior ministry officials and make an assessment before recommending to his board whether the series be played at all.
Saeed Ahmed Rafi said the fate of the tour depended "entirely" on his report.
The Shiv Sena, an ally of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's Bharatiya Janata Party, has threatened to harm Pakistani diplomats if the series takes place, and on Monday said 40,000 of its volunteers would storm the stadium to disrupt play.
Its officials claimed the party had formed a 51-member suicide squad whose members would burn themselves before the prime minister's residence to stop the match.
The Shiv Sena says India should have no ties with Pakistan until it stops training and arming guerrillas who want Kashmir to break away from India. Pakistan says it only extends moral support to them. Both nations have fought two wars over the Himalayan region.
India and Pakistan have in recent years faced each other in a neutral country, fearing violence from the fierce fans. The political rivalry between the two neighbors often spills on to cricket fields.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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