India says No to Sahara Cup

For the second successive year running, India pulled out of the five match Sahara Cup Series in Toronto, scheduled to be played from September 9 to 17. This was announced by Union Sports Minister SS Dhindsa on Thursday. He ruled out India's participation in any series against Pakistan as long as the latter continued to support cross-border terrorism.

Talking to PTI in New Delhi, Dhindsa said "the Indian team will not participate in a bilateral series against Pakistan as long as that country goes on encouraging killings of innocent people in Kashmir and elsewhere." Doubts over Government clearance for the tournament loomed large after the recent killings in Kashmir.

Even as there were doubts, the Board of Control for Cricket in India which deferred the August 10 selection went ahead and announced that the team would be announced on August 19. Last year, India decided to pull out of the tournament due to the Kargil intrusion and instead played a three match series against West Indies.

Reacting to the government decision, the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India AC Muthiah issued the following statement in Chennai: "If the government has taken a decision not to permit the Indian cricket team to go to Toronto, the BCCI will abide by the decision of the government. I suppose the same logic will apply regarding the participation in the Olympics by Indian athletes and the Indian hockey team."

Pakistan defeated India 3-2 in 1996, the inaugural year of the tournament. In the second edition, India bounced back to beat Pakistan 4-1 in the next. The third edition was won by Pakistan by a margin of 4-1. Last year in the DMC Toronto festival, India beat the West Indies 2-1.