India says no decision yet on Pakistan tour

NEW DELHI: The Indian government is yet to decide whether to allow the national cricket team to tour Pakistan, amid serious doubts following the attacks in Mumbai, a government spokesman said on Sunday.

'Since the tour is in January there is still some time, we are discussing the issue,' foreign ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash told Reuters.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has sought permission to tour amid security concerns over playing in Pakistan.

The three-day rampage which killed nearly 200 people in Mumbai have dimmed hopes after the Indian government said it had proof of a Pakistani link, straining political ties between the south Asian neighbours.

Indian media quoted unnamed cricket officials on Sunday as saying the tour appeared doubtful. Indian board secretary N. Srinivasan refused to comment.

There have also been reports that some England players are reluctant to return to India later this week to play a two-test series.

'I would not, if somebody felt strongly, force their arm,' England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) managing director Hugh Morris said on Saturday.

England called off the last two games of a one-day series to return home following the attacks, with the two boards agreeing to go ahead with the tests.

The Pakistan tour would depend on a security assessment, Prakash said.

'Before any tour is undertaken an advance team goes and carries out an assessment. The team has not gone. We will wait for the team's visit and its report on return before deciding anything.'

The Indian team did not go on a full tour of Pakistan for nearly 15 years until 2004 due to political tensions.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has already raised concerns the attacks could scupper the series.

India are due to play three tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 international in the Jan. 13 to Feb. 19 tour.

MEDIA REPORTS

The NDTV and CNN-IBN news channels, quoting unnamed government sources, said the matches were cancelled and also unlikely to be played at neutral venues.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) declined to comment on the reports, saying its request for a security clearance for the tour was pending with the government.

The tour was first put in doubt earlier this month when the Indian government denied permission to the national junior hockey team to visit Pakistan.

The BCCI is also waiting for England to confirm next week's two-Test tour of India after the last two one-day matches were cancelled and the tourists returned home following the Mumbai attacks.

The BCCI shifted the second Test from Mumbai to Chennai, but retained Vadodara as the venue for a three-day practice match from December 5 and the first Test in Ahmedabad from December 11.