Days after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and ICC had unveiled a revised schedule for the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023, the Indian board has received a request from Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) to tweak the schedule a bit again.
The HCA, which is scheduled to host three World Cup 2023 matches including two Pakistan games, has alerted the BCCI that the Hyderabad Police was concerned about providing adequate security as the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket stadium is set to host two consecutive matches.
The stadium will host New Zealand vs Netherlands on October 9 and Pakistan vs Sri Lanka on October 10 and the HCA said that the Hyderabad police was not confident of providing adequate officials to ensure security at the venue.
"It is indeed a concern, and we have brought it to the attention of the BCCI. We have asked the board if the dates can be adjusted. At least a one-day break between the games would be helpful. We have discussed with BCCI CEO (acting) Hemang Amin to see if the schedule can be tweaked. If not, we will have no other option but to manage," an HCA official, who works for Retd Justice L Nageswara Rao (the administrator), told Cricbuzz.
The ICC and BCCI had already revised the World Cup schedule involving nine matches including the one between India and Pakistan in Ahmedabad - as the marquee contest was shifted from October 15 to October 14.
This led to Pakistan's match against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad being pushed from October 12 to October 10 to ensure the Men in Green have adequate time to prepare for the India clash.
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As per the Indian Express report, none of the BCCI heads had consulted the HCA regarding the date change, and the issue was rather made aware to the cricket association officials by Hyderabad Police who informed them that they won't be able to provide adequate security, especially for the Pakistan match.
On the other hand, as per ESPNCricinfo, HCA, which is been run by a Supreme Court-appointed administrator, also showed uncertainty about giving acceptable facilities for all four teams to practice in Uppal.
Sri Lanka will travel to Hyderabad on October 8, after having played a day-night match in Delhi on October 7, against South Africa. Pakistan and Netherlands will open their campaign in Hyderabad, contesting each other on October 6, and will remain there for their second group match.
New Zealand, who play the Netherlands on October 9, will reach Hyderabad after playing the tournament opener against England on October 5 in Ahmedabad.
In case BCCI fails to make any more schedule changes, the HCA will try to get security personnel from other sources to ensure matches go smoothly.
