NEW DELHI, 27 February 2004 — Former skipper Krishnamachari Srikkanth has backed India to register their maiden test-series win in Pakistan next month.

“India have got a very strong batting line-up. The players are at their peak and I’m very confident this will be the first Indian team to win a series on Pakistani soil,” Srikkanth, who led India on their last tour to Pakistan 14 years ago, told reporters yesterday.

Sachin Tendulkar, who made his debut as a 16-year-old on that tour, is the only member of the current team to have played Test cricket in Pakistan.

India play five One-Day Internationals, starting in Karachi on March 13, followed by three Tests.

Srinath Leads Pack to be India’s Bowling Coach in Pakistan

Meanwhile, Javagal Srinath, former spearhead of the Indian cricket team’s pace bowling attack, is the frontrunner to take over as the team’s bowling coach on next month’s tour of Pakistan, officials said yesterday.

Srinath’s name was being considered after Australian Bruce Reid, who did the job during the recent Test and one-day series in Australia, declined to accompany the team to Pakistan for personal reasons. “Bruce has told us he will not be free during March and April because of previous commitments,” an official of the Board of Control for Cricket in India said.

“We are looking at an alternative. It could be Srinath or someone else. The board will decide on Sunday.”

Srinath, 34, retired in November as India’s second most successful pace bowler with 236 wickets from 67 Tests. Only Kapil Dev, with 434 wickets, took more. Srinath also played in 229 one-day internationals in which he took an Indian record of 315 wickets, including 16 in the last World Cup in southern Africa.

Indian captain Sourav Ganguly confirmed on Thursday that a bowling coach would accompany the team when it leaves for Pakistan on March 10 — but insisted it would not be Pakistani great Wasim Akram.

Ganguly, asked at a media conference if a Pakistani fast bowler would be India’s bowling coach, said: “If you are referring to Wasim Akram, it is no. It will be an Indian.” Ganguly admitted the upcoming series against Pakistan would be a big challenge for his team.

“Playing Pakistan is not the same as playing another country,” the Indian captain said. “It has a different charm. We can’t shy away from the fact that the expectations from fans will be immense. They obviously want us to win.

It is up to the cricketers to take the pressure and play their best.”

Pakistan Worry Over India Tour Opt-Out Clause

Pakistan are concerned that India could call off their Test tour next month at the first hint of crowd trouble. Pakistan Cricket Board chief executive Rameez Raja said yesterday that the board had asked their Indian counterparts to amend a memorandum of understanding which included a condition allowing India’s players to return home if there was an off-field incident.

“We have asked them to soften this clause, since it also states that in the condition of an aborted tour on security grounds the Pakistan board cannot claim any compensation from them, as per International Cricket Council rules,” Raja said. “If the tour is called off under any pretext it will be disastrous for Pakistan cricket.”

The Indian board refused to respond to Raja’s comments. President Jagmohan Dalmiya said: “It is a board document, not a public one. There will be several things which might be changed.

This (type of discussion) happens between all boards.”

First Day Abandoned in Bulawayo Test

The first day of the second Test between Zimbabwe and Bangladesh was abandoned without a ball being bowled in Bulawayo yesterday because of a wet outfield following overnight rain. Zimbabwe lead the two-Test series 1-0.

England Wait on Jones’s Shin Scan

England fast bowler Simon Jones was set to discover later yesterday if his tour of the West Indies was over before it had begun because of a shin problem. Glamorgan quick Jones, 25, was called up to England’s squad for the Caribbean on Monday, having apparently proved his fitness on the A team tour of India after nearly 15 months out with a knee injury. Jones, who has played in just two Tests, returned to England from India on Wednesday as the remainder of the senior squad flew out to Jamaica. He then went straight to the National Cricket Academy in Loughborough, central England, for a scan on his left leg, the results of which were due to be released.

Among those who could replace Jones are Sussex’s James Kirtley and Kent’s Martin Saggers.