The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has made it clear that the schedule of the ICC World Cup 2013 will remain unchanged. BCCI’s unwavering stance reveals its commitment to the already revised schedule, setting the tone for an inflexible approach.The HCA’s request stemmed from concerns expressed by local police authorities regarding the availability of security personnel for consecutive match days. The HCA’s appeal gained prominence in recent days, prompting discussions between HCA officials and BCCI secretary Jay Shah.
During these discussions held in Delhi, BCCI secretary Jay Shah, who was present at the Asia Cup team selection meeting, emphatically conveyed the board’s stance. According to an official BCCI source, “BCCI secretary Jay Shah held a meeting with HCA officials in Delhi after the Asia Cup team selection meeting, and the state unit was categorically told that no changes would be entertained after a revised schedule was issued on August 9.
Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium are slated to hist just three of the 45 league stage matches in the ODI World Cup, with two matches involving qualifier Netherlands and Pakistan each. In fact, among the nine changes made to the original World Cup schedule that was announced in June, Hyderabad witnessed one of those changes with the Pakistan-Sri Lanka clash, the final tie at the venue, preponed from October 12 to 10 in a bid to give sufficient gap to the Babar Azam-led side for the match against India which will be on October 14.
According to a report in Indian Express, the Hyderabad Police raised a concern over security with the revised World Cup schedule leaving Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium to host back-to-back matches. The venue will have New Zealand-Netherlands tie on October 9 followed by the match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on the very next day. Hence, the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) has sent an official request to the BCCI to increase the gap between the two matches. The report further added that none of the BCCI heads had consulted the HCA regarding the change in date and the issue was rather made aware to the cricket association officials by Hyderabad Police who informed that the won't be able to provide adequate security, especially for the Pakistan match.