Mumbai and Hyderabad swap dates of T20Is vs West Indies

[Ulquiorra]

 

The T20I series opener will be hosted by Hyderabad on December 6. © AFP

The Mumbai police's inability to provide security to the tour-opening first T20I between India and West Indies in Mumbai on December 6 has resulted in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shifting the match to Hyderabad. According to the original schedule, Hyderabad was supposed to host the third and final T20I on December 11.

"The BCCI has informed us that the December 6 T20I will now be played in Hyderabad. The final match will be played in Mumbai," Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) secretary R Vijayanand told ToI on Friday (November 22) evening.

Though Mumbai Cricket Association was optimistic that all the issues surrounding the game will be sorted out in two-three days, the BCCI took an early call on the matter to give the hosting association enough time to reschedule things.

The Mumbai police will be on a high alert on December 6, the anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition and the "Mahaparinirvan Din" of Dalit icon BR Ambedkar. On that day, lakhs of Ambedkar followers throng the Chaityabhumi, his memorial in Dadar, and therefore providing security for the match could prove to be a headache for the Mumbai police.

The HCA will now have to speed up things as they have only two weeks left. The officials had already called for tenders but now the dates will have to be brought forward. The entire process will have to be speeded up.

"It will not be much of a hassle but the officials will now have to sit down and rework the whole thing. Time is of a premium and therefore there cannot be any laxity on the part of the officials," sources said.