Cricket fans may have to wait a while longer for Pakistan and India series, as Modi government once again given red signal for the series between arch rivals even on neutral venue, Indian newspaper claims.
The newspaper quoting BCCI official said “the government has given them an indication that public sentiment at the moment is against Pakistan, which is involved in anti-India activities. Also, there are only a few days left for the proposed series to start (in the latter half of December). If the government wanted us to play, we would have got clearance a long time ago. So, I don’t think this series is happening.”
The government is also believed to have disapproved of the public statements made by some BCCI officials.
The BCCI had sought the government’s permission for a short ODI and T20 series against Pakistan in Sri Lanka sometime after December 15 — a week after its ongoing series against South Africa and before it travels to Australia in January.
The Lanka tie had seemed a certainty with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif giving the green signal on November 26 for the series.
It was to be played as part of a MoU agreement between the two boards to hold six bilateral series between 2015 and 2023. After several rounds of discussion and various venue possibilities, Sri Lanka had emerged the choice while there has also been talk of a Test series in England sometime next year.
