All posts by h716a5.icu

Andrew Miller at Lord's21-Jun-2009A Pakistan with momentum is a beast that cannot be contained. England discovered that fact to their cost in 1992 at Melbourne, when Imran Khan’s cornered tigers sprung at their throats to seize the country’s first major global title. And now, a generation later but in a campaign of distinct and glorious parallels, Sri Lanka have also sampled the unstoppable alchemy that occurs when cricket’s most emotional and temperamental participants find a way to meld their ambitions to their deeds.It doesn’t always end up this way. Two years ago against India, in the inaugural World Twenty20 final in Johannesburg, Pakistan blew their chance for glory when Misbah-ul-Haq choked on his emotions at the end of a stunning match-turning counterattack, and chose the wrong ball to flick over fine leg. And then, of course, there was Pakistan’s last appearance in the 50-over World Cup final, against Australia right here at Lord’s in 1999, when the conviction in the performance and the margin in the result – eight wickets – exactly mirrored today’s effect and upshot.In fact, it is a decade and a day since Pakistan’s demolition at the hands of Australia, and only two players remain from that match. Abdul Razzaq bowled two overs that day for 13, having limped to 17 from 51 balls while batting at No. 3; Shahid Afridi flogged two fours in 16 balls, and wasn’t called upon to put his legspin into practice. Ten years and a thousand memories later, Razzaq and Afridi rose to the needs of the hour and turned themselves into the game’s critical performers. Like the identities of the teams in this poignant final, it was a detail that can only have been scripted by the fates.”Me, Shahid and Razzaq, we were chatting with the guys: ‘Please this time we will hold our nerves and make our final touch’,” said Younis, who added how surprised he had been by the maturity of Afridi’s batting. “He took singles,” he said in admiration of a man who added calculation to his aggression, and paced the chase to perfection. Two lusty swipes into the stands thrilled a packed Lord’s, but not half as much as the scruffy leg-bye with which the title was sealed. Rare is the Pakistan team that puts substance over style, but when it occurs, the overall effect is electrifying.As for Razzaq, he had his own reasons to impress – his omission from the last World Twenty20 in South Africa was the catalyst for his defection to the ICL, which in turn led to his two-year exile from international cricket. He cut through the red tape last month, but only returned as a replacement for the injured Yasir Arafat last week. Nevertheless, he slipped effortlessly into his time-honoured utility role, this time as an under-rated old hand to balance the youthful aggression of Wasim Akram’s acolyte, Mohammad Aamer. After nine deliveries of the final, old and young had claimed a pair of ducks between them. And those lead weights of expectation had been alchemised into gold.

Both the captain and his Man of the Match hail from the troubled North West Frontier Province, and Afridi himself from the Khyber Agency, the symbolic frontline of Pakistan’s War on Terror. Chaos can seem at times to be embedded in the Pakistani DNA, but as both men showed in their performances in this tournament, it does not have to be this way

Younis has now stepped aside from Twenty20 cricket, much as Imran Khan bowed out on a high in 1992. For all his quiet insistence that this competition lacks the prestige of the 50-over World Cup, he knows that he and his players have achieved something wonderful, and every bit as lasting as the memories forged by Imran, Miandad, Wasim and Mushtaq, way back in the mists of time.”I’m the second Khan winning a World Cup for Pakistan, so I’m very proud of my Khans,” said Younis. “This is my dream. I dreamed all the time of lifting the World Cup. My thinking in all my career is that I will be remembered for a team like 1992. I was not in the Imran Khan team, and this is a dream come true. I’m really happy. Though this World Cup is Twenty20, at least we won our second World Cup. This is a gift to our whole nation.”He is not wrong. To get a sense of how much Pakistan needed this victory, you have to look beyond the bedlam in the stands at Lord’s where a shimmer of bouncing green shirts gave a surface-level glimpse of the euphoria, and instead burrow deep into the parks and gullies of Karachi, Rawalpindi, Lahore and Peshawar, where a nation starved of joy has been given the timeliest succour. It is arguable, in fact, that there has been no more timely sporting victory since a newly unified South Africa won the Rugby World Cup back in 1995.Where Francois Pienaar’s Springboks drew a newly unified nation ever more tightly together, the achievement of Younis’s men has been to help slow the fragmentation of a state that is rapidly being considered by the world at large to have failed. Both the captain and his Man of the Match hail from the troubled North West Frontier Province, and Afridi himself from the Khyber Agency, the symbolic frontline of Pakistan’s War on Terror. Chaos can seem at times to be embedded in the Pakistani DNA, but as both men showed in their performances in this tournament, it does not have to be this way.”If you see the whole nation, where law and order is not good, we are from them,” said Younis. “How can we be consistent? With these kind of things going for us, if you see our cricket it is all the time suffering from a lot of things. After that we are still winning the World Cup. It is a great achievement for us. I am requesting to all of the countries you must come to Pakistan. Everybody knows law and order is not good but it is not our fault.”For the moment, any prospect of cricket resuming in Pakistan is futile, despite the joy of this occasion and the hope for the future that it generates. But in the shorter term, what we witnessed at Lord’s today was the will of a troubled nation to pull in the same direction. From the fight within the team to the reaction around the stands, it was clear how much the notion of Pakistan still means. Next summer, the prospect exists of England hosting their “home” Test series against Australia. Today was a taster of the euphoria that would bring. It must be allowed to happen.

Jesse Lingard wants to return to West Ham United this winter, it has been revealed…

What’s the word?

According to the ever-reliable ExWHUemployee, the 28-year-old midfielder has told the Irons of his desire to re-sign for the club during the January transfer window amid reports of his discontent at Manchester United.

His brother, Louie Scott, who is also his agent, is keen on the move too, whilst the Hammers’ hierarchy would like to complete a deal as quickly as possible with Said Benrahma set to represent Algeria at the Africa Cup of Nations next year.

It remains to be seen how much the England international would command at this stage, though some claims emerged recently suggesting that just £10m could be enough to seal him.

Transfermarkt value Lingard at £19.8m.

Major update

This exciting development is sure to leave everyone concerned with West Ham absolutely buzzing, ranging from the coaching staff to the London Stadium faithful.

After the last game of the season, manager David Moyes made it clear that he would like to keep hold of Lingard, telling reporters (via the Evening Standard):

“I hope Jesse’s here, we’d like to keep him, he’s done an exceptional job for us but there’s no guarantees, he’s not our player.”

Evidently, a move failed to materialise, even despite assistant Stuart Pearce’s plea right before deadline day.

“We would like him to come and join us. That has been an open secret. He was wonderful last year,” he told talkSPORT before adding: “He’s a special lad and was very good around the players – the players really like him. His ability shone out last year and gave us a great option in our squad.”

[snack-amp-story url = “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-west-ham-news-transfer-updates-gsb-kretinsky-moyes” title=”Read the latest West Ham news, transfer updates and much, much more!”]

These are feelings that have been echoed by the fanbase, quite frequently, too. In fact, in direct response to Ex’s update, several supporters went wild on social media, as relayed by Hammers.News this weekend.

It’s hardly a surprise to see such jubilation over a half-season loanee but the Red Devils outcast made quite the impact and evidently, he became an instant hit around east London.

His nine goals and five assists helped steer the Hammers into a historic sixth-place finish and subsequently, the Europa League, where they have since qualified for the knockout stages.

Lingard’s experience in Europe and in the Premier League could help Moyes’ side in their quest for glory in the competitions as well as in their attempts to breach the top six this time around.

This update will delight many at West Ham.

AND in other news, Fewer touches than Fabianski: £18m-rated lightweight badly let Moyes down in Wolves defeat…

A Pakistani court has issued a stay order, until June 2, on the relocation of the World Cup 2011 secretariat from Lahore to India

Cricinfo staff18-May-2009A Pakistani court has stayed, until June 2, the ICC’s decision to relocate the World Cup 2011 secretariat from Lahore to India. The World Cup Organising Committee had, on April 28, taken the decision on security grounds at a meeting held in Mumbai.The order was issued by Mohammad Younis Anees, the senior judge of a Lahore civil court, the Pakistan Cricket Board’s legal adviser Taffazul Rizvi said.”The fact raised by the petitioner [PCB] needs consideration,” the order said, according to a report on . “The World Cup tournament director is restrained from operating the secretariat from any other place in any other city/country till the next hearing.”The case was filed last week against the ICC, the IDI (the ICC’s commercial arm), the tournament director and the World Cup central organising committee.The PCB’s rationale, Rizvi said, was that until an ICC dispute committee or the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) resolves the primary case – shifting the matches out of Pakistan – the World Cup secretariat could not be moved out of Pakistan. “Pakistan can also claim relief on the relocation of the secretariat,” he said.Rizvi insisted the Lahore court has jurisdiction over the matter. “The secretariat was in Lahore so of course the court has jurisdiction over it,” he told Cricinfo. The court order notes that the tournament director is restrained from shifting offices from Lahore to Mumbai and also, significantly, operating the office from any city other than Lahore. Any move to do so, Rizvi said, may result in a contempt of court application.The ICC was represented by a legal firm from Karachi, Vellani & Vellani, and had asked for the hearing to be adjourned till it had prepared the case properly. The ICC’s legal cell had sent an email to the PCB requesting an adjournment. The next hearing is due on June 2. An ICC spokesperson told Cricinfo, “We don’t believe there is any substance to the PCB’s claims and we will vigorously defend this matter.”The PCB’s civil case against moving the World Cup’s head office is one of a series of protests Pakistan has made against the International Cricket Council (ICC) decision late last month to move the World Cup matches scheduled in Pakistan out of the country.Rizvi believes the PCB has a strong case as it fights the ICC over the decision. A legal notice has also been sent to the ICC over the decision and the PCB wants to refer the case to the Court of Arbitration, Sports, in Lausanne, Switzerland. A clause in the hosting agreement signed in 2006 apparently boosts the case further: clause 23.5 gives co-hosts the option of moving matches to a different city, or even a country should the need arise.Since the case was filed, the PCB has sought to open back-channel communications over the issue of the World Cup matches with the co-hosts and its chairman, Ijaz Butt, was in Sri Lanka over the weekend meeting his counterpart of the national board there. He is expected to meet Sharad Pawar in India before travelling to South Africa to watch the IPL final.

Vikram Banerjee, the Gloucestershire left-arm spinner, has extended his contract with the club by two years

Cricinfo staff16-Mar-2009Vikram Banerjee, the Gloucestershire left-arm spinner, has extended his contract with the club by two years. The new contract keeps Banerjee at the club until 2010.”We are demonstrating the faith we have in Vikram’s ability,” Gloucestershire chief executive Tom Richardson told the club’s website. “Our director of cricket John Bracewell has expressed an intention to play two spinners when conditions suit in the coming season so we expect Vikram to play an important role.”Bracewell felt Banerjee complimented the balance of Gloucestershire’s attack. “I’m really looking forward to working with him in conjunction with [Richard] Dawson, [Matthew] Gitsham, which gives us one of the most rounded spin bowling attacks in the country,” he said.Banerjee, who will turn 25 on March 20, caught the eye at the end of the 2006 season and took 26 first-class wickets the following summer.

The Centurion leg of the IPL begins on Tuesday and the first match at Supersport Park features teams in different halves of the league

The Preview by George Binoy27-Apr-2009Match factsApril 28, 2009
Start time 16.45pm (14.45GMT)Big PictureWill Gautam Gambhir please stand up?•Associated PressThe Centurion leg of the IPL begins on Tuesday and the first match at Supersport Park features teams in different halves of the league. Delhi Daredevils won three out of three games and are currently in second spot, behind Deccan Chargers who won all of their four matches. Last year’s champions Rajasthan Royals are second from bottom with only one win – after a Super Over against Kolkata Knight Riders – from four games and will be underdogs against a formidable Delhi side.Delhi have almost no worries with any disciplines of their game. Their bowlers have struck form: Dirk Nannes proved a handful with the new ball with his skiddy pace while the spin duo of Daniel Vettori and Amit Mishra succeeded in stalling Bangalore Royal Challengers in the last game. Delhi’s strength is their powerful top-order and at least one batsman has come good in every game to ensure victory. A minor worry, though, is the form of Gautam Gambhir who is yet to make a contribution to Delhi’s campaign.Rajasthan’s two defeats so far have been because of batting collapses: they folded for 58 against Bangalore and 112 against Kings XI Punjab. They are missing Shane Watson’s contributions with the bat and Graeme Smith has been in poor form this season. They’ve had to rely on Yusuf Pathan for big hits and the lack of depth – Dimitri Mascarenhas and Ravindra Jadeja are a spot too high at Nos 5 and 6 – is hurting them.Form guideDelhi: Tillakaratne Dilshan and AB de Villiers have 117 and 126 runs respectively at strike-rates of over 150 from two innings. Gambhir, however, has only 31 runs from three matches. Vettori is their leading wicket-taker with six wickets and an economy-rate of just over seven while Mishra impressed with 1 for 19 in his only game.Rajasthan: That Shane Warne has the best batting average – 39.00 – among the Rajasthan batsman says a lot about how poor the rest have been. Smith has scored only 19 runs in three innings. Left-arm fast bowler Kamran Khan has been their best bowler with five wickets and an economy-rate of only 4.90.Watch out forTillakaratne Dilshan: The pre-tournament talk regarding Delhi’s batting revolved around their exciting new signing, David Warner, and a few people were surprised when Dilshan was selected ahead of the Australian in the XI. Dilshan, however, has played two vital innings which helped Delhi recover from losing their openers cheaply.Team newsDelhi have lost Manoj Tiwary to injury and replaced him with Mithun Manhas, who held his nerve during a tense finish against Bangalore. Mishra, who was also brought in for the last game, is likely to retain his place unless the conditions in Centurion are extremely seamer friendly.Delhi: 1 Gautam Gambhir, 2 Virender Sehwag (capt), 3 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Mithun Manhas, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Daniel Vettori, 8 Dirk Nannes, 9 Pradeep Sangwan, 10 Amit Mishra, 11 Ashish Nehra.After the defeat against Punjab, Warne said that they would make changes to the top-order but it’s hard to predict what those changes will be. Tyron Henderson and Lee Carseldine are options but Rajasthan have few strong players on the bench to pick from.Rajasthan: 1 Graeme Smith, 2 Swapnil Asnodkar, 3 Rob Quiney/Tyron Henderson/Lee Carseldine, 4 Yusuf Pathan, 5 Dimitri Mascarenhas, 6 Ravindra Jedeja, 7 Shane Warne (capt), 8 Mahesh Rawat (wk), 9 Abhishek Raut, 10 Kamran Khan, 11 Munaf Patel.Head-to-head recordDelhi and Rajasthan played each other thrice last season. Delhi won the first encounter easily by nine wickets, but lost the next two. Rajasthan clinched a home victory by three wickets in the second league game before winning the semi-final by a whopping 105 runs in Mumbai.

The cricket world has begun to assess the impact, on its finances and credibility, of the fraud charges levelled against Allen Stanford. The ECB and West Indies Cricket Board, the two boards most closely associated with Stanford, have suspended negotiatio

Cricinfo staff18-Feb-2009
Allegations of fraud against Allen Stanford have embarassed the WICB and the ECB © The Nation
The cricket world has begun to assess the impact on its finances and credibility of the fraud charges levelled against Allen Stanford. The ECB and West Indies Cricket Board, the two boards most closely associated with Stanford, have suspended negotiations with him and indicated that domestic and international tournaments sponsored by him are at risk.The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a complaint on Tuesday in a federal court in Dallas accusing Stanford, who heads the Stanford Financial Group, of fraud in the sale of around US$8 billion of high-yielding certificates of deposits held in his organisation’s bank in Antigua.The crisis will have an immediate impact on some of the future tournaments organized by both the affected boards. The Stanford 20/20 regional series in West Indies is now unlikely to be held. Asked whether the tournament would go ahead, the WICB president Julian Hunte said: “We anticipate that it will not continue (in the immediate future).”He then sought to play down the impact on the WICB. “That is not a difficult matter for us to deal with. Either the WICB on its own or with the assistance of other entrepreneurs, will be able to get a tournament going in a way that will make it financially viable for us.”However, the cancellation of the tournament will deal a significant financial blow to the authorities involved in its organisation. Forbes Persaud, chief executive of the Trinidad and Tobago board, said the immediate financial loss as a result of the cancellation would amount to US$195,000: “Now that this has happened, it would mean that we cannot really look forward to that [money] coming to us again,” Persaud told the . “I don’t like to kick a man when he’s down. What we know is that as we speak, his license has been suspended. To all intents and purposes, the West Indies Cricket Board is not dependent on Stanford for its financial viability.”

Dean Windass believes that Tottenham Hotspur needed to pay £50m to secure Adama Traore from Wolves in the summer.

The winger was reported to be a target for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side in the transfer window.

Reports claimed that Spurs had made a loan bid for Traore, with the option to buy him at the end of the season.

The Spain international has emerged as a star during his time at Wolves, tearing defences apart with his pace and his close control.

His end product does leave something to be desired, however, as he has failed to score a goal or provide an assist in the 2021/22 season, with Wolves yet to win a game.

Windass believes Spurs needed to pay a major fee to bring the player into the club.

The north London club ended the summer with the signings of Bryan Gil, Emerson Royal, Pape Sarr, Pierluigi Gollini, and Cristian Romero.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Windass said: “Obviously Nuno fancies him. It’s difficult. You could play him down the middle, but Harry Kane’s staying now, you could play him down the right hand side, he’s the quickest player in the Premier League.

“That’s what Nuno’s saying, that he’ll get us up the pitch. 50 million would be a fair reflection, I think. Wolves would have been happy with 50 million.”

Albie Morkel destroyed Australia in the dying stages for the second time in the series as he powered South Africa to a three-wicket win and a 2-1 lead

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale23-Jan-2009
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

David Warner impressed in his first Twenty20 international and now he has transferred that form to the ODI arena © PA Photos
Albie Morkel destroyed Australia in the dying stages for the second time in the series as he powered South Africa to a three-wicket win and a 2-1 lead. Morkel built on the solid work of Herschelle Gibbs and Jacques Kallis to guide the highest successful ODI chase at the SCG and put a slight dampener on the Sydney crowd’s day after the fans had been thrilled by their local hero David Warner during the Australian innings.Morkel fell five short of the target of 270 when he skied Nathan Hauritz to long-on but his 40 from 22 balls had done the job and he had already slammed Hauritz for a six and a pair of fours over midwicket in the same over. Again it was the batting Powerplay that haunted Australia as Morkel and Mark Boucher took 1 for 41 from the five overs beginning at the start of the 41st.They were so productive that they got home with 21 balls to spare, despite a superb return of 1 for 29 from nine overs for Nathan Bracken. None of his bowling colleagues had the same effect – Mitchell Johnson was particularly expensive in his first match back with 1 for 71 from nine – and it was a surprisingly one-sided result in the end after Australia had South Africa worried at 5 for 163.Things had started better for the visitors. After Australia relied on their youngest man Warner to set up their total, South Africa leaned on their two oldest stagers to get the chase off to a flyer. Gibbs and Kallis combined for a 96-run partnership that took them to a terrifically strong 1 for 125 in the 19th over.Gibbs in particular was highly entertaining, racing to 64 from 52 deliveries as he continued to try and re-establish his place in the side following his lay-off for alcohol rehabilitation. He was especially defiant against the speed of Shaun Tait and slapped him down the ground for a pair of boundaries early in the fast man’s first spell.A cleanly-struck six over cover off Johnson was exquisite and when Tait returned he walked at him and powered a couple of boundaries through the off side. Gibbs’ half-century came from 36 balls and he was making Australia pay for dropping him in the first over, when he drove at Tait and was spilled by David Hussey diving forward at backward point.It was the second grassed chance in the opening over, after Ricky Ponting put down a simple chance at second slip off Hashim Amla. The fielding coach Mike Young breathed a sigh of relief when Gibbs was finally caught by Michael Hussey at slip. It was a strange shot from Gibbs, who guided Johnson straight to Hussey, almost as if he was unaware the man was in place and was looking for easy runs to third man.His departure left Kallis in charge of the chase and he was doing it comfortably having enjoyed a celebration earlier in the innings when he became the eighth man and the first South African to reach 10,000 one-day international runs. Kallis compiled a calm 60 from 72 balls and took few risks but when he edged Tait behind, South Africa were in trouble at five down.More danger was to come when Neil McKenzie was run out attempting a second and was caught short by a brilliantly quick release from Warner in the outfield. It seemed that in his first international appearance in front of his home crowd in Sydney, everything Warner touched turned to gold.He entered the match under pressure to prove he was not a one-hit wonder having blasted 89 on his Twenty20 international debut 12 days ago. Warner’s 69 from 60 balls featured clean strikes from the outset and an early vicious pull for six over midwicket off Dale Steyn would have comfortably fitted into his Twenty20 highlights package.Warner was equally strong through the off side and punched a couple of cracking drives forward of point. He was so dominant that when the half-century opening partnership came up he had made 43 compared to Shaun Marsh’s 6.His fifty came from 41 deliveries with a single clipped to leg off Kallis and he followed by taking Kallis for a super drive over mid-off for four and a pull over square leg for six. Warner also showed his cricketing brain by taking 21 singles and it was only when his stumps were rattled as he tried to clear mid-on with a hefty heave off Steyn that his fireworks were extinguished.Australia’s problem was that whereas Warner had moved at top speed, the rest of the order settled for a strolling pace. Marsh contributed 43 from 63 balls and James Hopes and David Hussey made scores in the 30s but failed to move things quickly, and it was a strong fightback from South Africa, who had initially been looking at a potential 300-plus chase.They were led admirably by their captain Johan Botha, who collected 3 for 32 and was easily the most difficult man to get away. He picked up the crucial wicket of Ponting, who chipped to short midwicket having raced to 29, and he also removed Marsh and Brad Haddin. Fittingly, it was Botha who later struck the winning boundary, and confirmed the 2-1 advantage for a team that entered the series as the underdogs.

Many Wolves fans have been left reacting to some comments made by Patrick Cutrone.

Speaking to Sky Italy (via Talking Wolves), the striker commented on his imminent loan move to Empoli in the Serie A:

“Happy to be back in Italy. I chose Empoli because it’s a great club and a great place to play football. I tell the fans that I am really fired up: I can’t wait to get to know you all, get on the pitch & tear things up.”

Some members of the Molineux faithful were left confused by him claiming that he will ‘tear things up’, given his troubled time at the Midlands club, in which he has only managed to score just a mere three goals in 28 games in total over all competitions across the last two seasons (Transfermarkt), and he has been shipped out on loan to both Fiorentina and Valencia respectively.

Nonetheless, Cutrone does not seem too enthusiastic to stay at the Wanderers judging by his latest comments, and so it may be a wise idea for them to move him on permanently after his loan spell ends.

Wolves fans on Cutrone comments

These WWFC supporters gave their reactions as the comments were shared on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that Cutrone is a ‘joker’:

“For a starters mate. Tear up your Wolves contract and everything will be sweet”

Credit: @charliewwfc_

“Couldn’t tear a piece of paper dafty”

Credit: @wwfcrhys

“Who does this guy think he is?”

Credit: @kyewazza

“When has he ever torn things up?”

Credit: @danielcmila

“Tear things up … Behave”

Credit: @trev291

“How many years has this joker got left on his contract?”

Credit: @silentbob1957

In other news, find out what transfer update has Wanderers fuming here!

The Indian government has told the BCCI to call off next year’s tour of Pakistan, according to a senior board official

Cricinfo staff18-Dec-2008The Indian board has called off next year’s tour of Pakistan, following a directive from the government that it was not feasible “in the prevailing circumstances”. The series was in doubt following deterioration of relations between the two countries, a fallout of the Mumbai attacks which India alleges had links to elements in Pakistan.The only option now to stage the series is to agree on a neutral venue, though a senior BCCI official told Cricinfo it was too early to take that call.”We had asked the government to clear the tour and Pranab Mukherjee, the foreign minister, informed me today that they are not clearing the tour,” Rajiv Shukla, the BCCI vice-president, said. “The BCCI had made it clear much earlier that they would go strictly by what the Indian government has to say, and now it’s obvious that the tour is off. How can we go against our government’s advice?”Shukla said it was too early to say whether the tour would go ahead at a neutral venue. Officials from the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council have already offered to host the series at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, where the England team trained before reaching India for the current two-Test series.The government directive does not come as a surprise, with public opinion in India, as well as that of former cricketers, administrators and politicians, largely against the tour. A series of newspaper reports after the Mumbai attacks quoted government sources as saying the tour would be called off and, last week, India’s sports minister, M S Gill, said he was not in favour of the team travelling to Pakistan.However, if the two countries don’t arrive at an agreement to proceed with the series at a neutral venue, the BCCI will have to convince the ICC of its reasons not to tour, or pay a hefty fine.In any case, Pakistan’s chances of hosting the postponed ICC Champions Trophy next year have been hit hard as its status as the host depended on a security review that was to be conducted during India’s visit. India were scheduled to tour Pakistan from January 4-February 20 for three Tests, five ODIs and one Twenty20 international.