The proposed exhibition match between an Indian XI and a Pakistani XI in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, is creating quite a flutter within the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
According to Abu Dhabi Cricket Control Board president B R Shetty, who is in New Delhi with ADCCB secretary Ravi Pandit to sort out the matter, a senior official in the Indian board had assured him there would be no problem with the BCCI.
"This official, whom I will name if the match does not go through, convinced me that I did not need to go to the BCCI for permission," Shetty told rediff.com "He told me that since this game is an unofficial match, the BCCI had no say in it."
Shetty said the official told him he only needed to convince the players, who in turn would get the required permission from the BCCI.
"Only after this did I travel to Rawalpindi and meet all the players," Pandit said. "Most of them showed an interest in coming for the match. All the players are with me. Fourteen have already confirmed [participation]. Now I have to decide which 12 to pick. The players cannot deny this. I was on the same plane that they were on. I have got some of them to sign on paper also."
Pandit said former Indian skipper and manager Ajit Wadekar was with him in Rawalpindi and spoke to the players in the dressing room. "You can ask him also," he said. "Sourav Ganguly agreed to lead the side." Ganguly was unavailable for confirmation.
Shetty said he also spoke to BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya before addressing a press conference on April 25. "I spoke to Dalmiya in the day and invited him," he said, "but he refused to come for the event. Later he denied ever speaking to me. I am shocked."
A source in the BCCI revealed that the board was getting back at the players by refusing to release them for the $100,000 inaugural match to be played at the spanking new Zayed Stadium on May 14 because they had refused to tour Bangladesh in July-August citing fatigue.
The stadium, which has been built without a single pillar for support, cost approximately Rs 100 crore, or US$23 million.
BCCI secretary S Karunakaran Nair has stated that the board will not approve of the match nor release its players. But as the board is yet to give the players official contracts, it will be interesting to see if it can prevent them from playing the masala match.
Back in 1990, there was a similar row involving Indian players who threatened to strike when the BCCI refused them permission to play some exhibition matches in the US.