Sahara Cup selection meet put off

The selection of the Indian team for the September 9-17 Sahara Cup five-match series against Pakistan in Toronto has been put off indefinitely pending clearance for the event from the government.

"The meeting will not be held on August 10 as decided earlier. It will be held once we get government clearance, which we expect to receive by the end of this week," sources in the Board of Control for Cricket in India said on Monday.

"We are planning to hold a six-day camp prior to the scheduled departure of the squad on September 6," they added.

There is an element of doubt over India's participation in the event following resent assertions by Sports Minister Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa that clearance will be given only after assessing the necessity of such a trip in the wake of recent killings in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We have to review the situation keeping in mind the recent killings in Jammu and Kashmir by militants and see whether such a tour would be in the national interest.

"When the file regarding the Indian cricket team's visit to Toronto comes to me, I will have to see whether it would be in the national interest that India plays against Pakistan at this juncture," Dhindsa had said on Saturday.

Mail Cricket Editor