As the ice melts in the relations between India and Pakistan, the chances increase of the first tour by an Indian team since 1997, the likeliest date being February 2004.This much was hinted at by PCB chief Tauqir Zia, who said on Monday that he hoped India’s team would visit Pakistan in February as both countries progressed towards normalised relations. ‘‘We are planning to host India in February 2004 and we have approached the ICC in this regard,’’ Zia told reporters on his return to Lahore from Dubai, where he had met his Indian counterpart Jagmohan Dalmiya on Saturday at the Asian Cricket Foundation (ACF) meeting.‘‘(The) Indian cricket board is sincere in resuming the cricketing ties and is more than willing to send its team to Pakistan, but it needs its government’s clearance,’’ the PCB chief said.For his part, Dalmiya too termed the progress a ‘‘beginning’’ but said that while the Indian government has indicated that it hopes to restart bilateral sporting ties, he ruled out the resumption of on-field cricket action this year.‘‘As far as bilateral cricket ties are concerned it depends on the government and we are talking to them,’’said Dalmiya on his return to Kolkata on Monday. Under the ICC’s ten-year Test programme, it would have been Pakistan’s turn to tour India but a relaxation can be sought as the Indian government will agree to let India tour. Incidentally just a day before the ACF meeting the Indian cricket board had, through its represntative Rajiv Shukla, submitted a proposal to the government seeking permission to play Pakistan at a neutral venue if possible.According to a senior BCCI official, a green signal for this proposal was ‘‘very much on the cards’’ and a likely venue being talked about is Toronto.Though the agenda at the ACF was the ‘development’ of Asian cricket a major time in Dubai was spent on the issue of scheduling of the Asia Cup, which has now been scheduled for April 2004.? The jinxed six-nation meet originally scheduled to be held last year in Pakistan had been postponed to July and was scheduled for either Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. PCB had put a spoke in the July plans by annoucing a ‘pull-out’ from the Cup ‘‘until India changed its attitude’’.But with fresh peace moves on the political front, the possibility of the Asia Cup being held as planned rose and the Dubai meet was expected to provide a solution.However, according to highly placed officials at both PCB and BCCI, PCB chief Zia stuck to his guns on the ‘pull-out’, sending jitters through the ACC of the possible financial fallout.At a media briefing later, Dalmiya said the tight schedule of the four Asian Test teams was responsible for the cup’s postponement. But a highly placed PCB official begged to differ from the ‘official’ version and pointed out: ‘‘If we can tour Morocco for a tri-series from August 9-28, then why can’t we make the July’s Asia Cup?’’He further insisted: ‘‘The fact of the matter is it was plain and simple on our part, unless India tour Pakistan we will not play (Asia Cup). It was this insistence that made the ACC opt for a safer route.’’Confirming this, a BCCI offical said that now, with a possible Indian tour in February 2004 (even if it at a neutral venue), the PCB would still be ‘seen as sticking to its stand’ as the Asia Cup will be held much after that. This way insists the BCCI source: ‘‘Both boards will be in a win-win situation and there won’t be any heartbreak or loss of face.’’
