Match practice for Test players in doubt

The chance for some players to get a bit of practice ahead of the Test series looks dim after the Players Association here objected to one more foreigner in the state championship.

Dravid,VVS Laxman,Murali Vijay,Amit Mishra,Dhawal Kulkarni and Laxmipathy Balaji will join the Indian squad late and the Indian board asked for some match practice. New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan said efforts were on to tag the Indians to local teams but the move faces opposition. If they think they can change the conditions halfway through the competition we would be absolutely against that, Players Association boss Heath Mills was quoted by the New Zealand Herald.

Meanwhile,the tour is expected to fetch the hosts a windfall with more than 25 million expected from a multi million dollar deal for television rights. It will be the biggest deal in the countrys sporting history.