Mumbai : Schedule of the men's ODI tour to India early next year has cast its shadow on the women's T20 exhibition series in India slated to be held next month. With Cricket Australia (CA) flashing no green signal over the availability of its women cricketers , BCCI had unilaterally announced the squads for the four match series ignoring the Aussie eves.
On April 4, the BCCI sent an email to CA to check whether some of the top Australian players - Meg Lanning, Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy - would be available to play in the exhibition matches. The very next day, Belinda Clarke, former Australian captain who also is CA'S interim high-performance head, wrote back saying that a decision could only be taken after the two boards had sorted the problem of scheduling the Australian men's ODI tour of India next January.
That ODI series has emerged as a point of controversy between the two boards. It is believed that CA chief executive Kevin Roberts has been trying hard to get his BCCI counterpart Rahul Johri on board.
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"Thanks so much for the note and detailed background regarding the planned progression of the women's exhibition matches," Clark wrote in her e-mail reply. "We will be in a position to consider the request when the current issue regarding the men's ODI series that was agreed in the FTP for late January 2020 is resolved by Rahul and Kevin. I understand that this is being worked through at present," she further added in her mail.
It is understood that subsequent to Clark's response, the BCCI sent CA multiple requests to confirm the Australian women's participation for the exhibition series, but hasn't received a response.
According to a senior BCCI official, India had committed to host Australia in January 2020 with January 12, 15 and 17 being chalked out as the dates for the three-match ODI series, though CA, it is understood, had checked with BCCI whether that ODI series could be played in India in March instead. However, South Africa will arrive in India to play an ODI series in March immediately after their home series against Australia. The BCCI also told CA that Indian players would need to be given at least a 15-day gap before playing the IPL, and hence the Australia series could not be rearranged.
The standoff between the two boards has also left Australian broadcasters fuming, both about an absence of ODI cricket on the home calendar as well as the fact that the nation's best players will be travelling during the Big Bash League.
