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England may have to settle for exotic experience By Simon Briggs in Lahore (Filed: 09/12/2005) Squad details India Tour details There was a revealing moment on the Today BBC Radio programme last week when David Graveney, the chairman of selectors, was asked why he thought England would be able to turn their tour around by beating Pakistan at one-day cricket. After an almost imperceptible hesitation Graveney replied: "Because of the players we've got out there." As replies go, this was a little flimsy, but probably the best option he had available. Certainly he did well to steer away from England's record. Discounting the pushovers Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, it is 14 years since England won a one-day series on opposition soil. That historical curiosity was a 3-0 win over New Zealand, just as both teams were gearing up for the 1992 World Cup in Australia. The players England had that year really were something to shout about. From Gooch to Hick to Botham to the young DeFreitas, they made up probably the best one-day side this country has produced. To be fair to Graveney, this year's mob have their merits too. Now that the piratical Kevin Pietersen has joined the middle order, they have the potential to scupper some big ships in the Caribbean in the World Cup next spring. Yet for the immediate challenge of this five-match series against Pakistan, starting in Lahore tomorrow, they look a little short on firepower. On top of the burden of history and the knowledge they will not be seeded in next year's ICC Champions Trophy in India if they lose, England will be battling with an injury list that has deprived them of four first-choice players, including their captain. Noises from within the camp after the losing Test series suggest a frustrated state of mind, exacerbated by blanket security and hotel fever. All of which strikes a direct contrast with Pakistan, a team revelling in their new-found potency. This series may come to be seen as no more than a learning experience for England, and an exotic one at that. When they last played one-dayers in Pakistan five years ago, the first match was disrupted by dew, the second by swarms of flying insects (which Andrew Flintoff remembers as being as big as his hand), and the third by clouds of tear gas. The only survivors from that tour are Flintoff, the likely BBC sports personality of the year on Sunday, and Marcus Trescothick, captain in Michael Vaughan's absence. Squad details Pakistan (from): *Inzamam-ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal, Salman Butt, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq, Shoaib Malik, Yasir Arafat, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Shoaib Akhtar, Danish Kaneria, Mohammad Sami. England (from): *ME Trescothick, AJ Strauss, MJ Prior, VS Solanki, IR Bell, KP Pietersen, PD Collingwood, A Flintoff, GO Jones, ID Blackwell, SJ Harmison, LE Plunkett, JM Anderson. Umpires: D Hair (Australia) & B Jerling (S Africa). The England and Wales Cricket Board have announced the final itinerary of their tour to India next year after the Indian authorities incorporated several changes to the draft tour programme. ECB official John Carr, in a statement, thanked the Indian Board for the changes. "They have significantly eased England's travelling schedule, confirming that both teams will travel by direct flights from venue to venue," he said. India Tour details ENGLAND ITINERARY.- Feb 13: Arrive in Bombay. 18-20: Cricket Club of India (Bombay). 23-25: President's XI (Baroda). March 1-5: 1st Test (Nagpur). 9-13: 2nd Test (Mohali). 18-22: 3rd Test (Bombay). March 25: One-day warm-up (Jaipur). 28: 1st ODI (Delhi). 31: 2nd ODI (Faridabad). April 3: 3rd ODI (Goa). 6: 4th ODI (Cochin). 9: 5th ODI (Guwahati). 12: 6th ODI (Jamshedpur). 15: 7th ODI (Indore). ----------------------------------------------------------------------- * G * O * A * N * E * T *** C * L * A * S * S * I * F * I * E * D * S * ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Spread the Christmas cheer - even when you're not here! Send Christmas Greetings to your loved ones in Goa. 2005 Christmas Package - Flowers, Bubbles and Layers of Love. http://www.goa-world.com/expressions/xmas/ -----------------------------------------------------------------------
