Pakistan cricket Board (PCB) supremo Ijaz Butt will be meeting Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Shashank Manohar on Friday to discuss the troubled India-Pakistan series scheduled in Jan-Feb.
Both the board chiefs will meet at Colombo on the sidelines of the Asian cricket Council (ACC) meeting.
The relations between India and Pakistan has severely damaged after the recent terror attacks at Mumbai that shocked the entire nation. The terror strike has destroyed the cordial atmosphere between the two countries. The series supposed to be held on January is now under cloud because of security apprehensions.

Saleem Altaf, the PCB’s chief operating officer is highly confident of better results. He expressed hope that both boards will work together towards making the tour possible.

Altaf, the former Pakistan player said that the series is important for both the sides.

In the current circumstances, a final decision on the series will be taken by the two governments. But the meeting has got its own importance in making the clouds clear for the tournament.

Butt will leave for Colombo on Thursday for the ACC meeting. He will be officially announced as the ACC President in Colombo. The post was left vacant after the resignation of former ACC chief Nasim Ashraf as PCB chairman in August.

Butt is expected to discuss the issue of the 2011 World Cup with top cricket officials from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Pakistan is to co-host the quadrennial spectacle along with the three Asian nations.

The recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai have put the chances of World Cup under black cloud, which is expected to bring out bitter consequences. Many teams including Australia has expressed doubts regarding the venues, which may result in black days of cricket. But anyhow, International Cricket Council (ICC) has denied the possibility of switching the World Cup venues.

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With the terror strikes having swept the complete enthusiasm of the cricket lovers, many fear that India may turn into a pariah for world cricket. The newly-appointed Director General of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Javed Miandad, but has extended support to the Indian board, saying Pakistan is keen to play in India and that India should reciprocate the same way by visiting Pakistan in January next year.

In a telephonic interview given to a newspaper from Lahore on Monday, Miandad said that both India and

Pakistan are victims of terrorism and cricket should play its role in bridging the gap between the two nations. Miandad said that Indian government shouldn’t resort to any knee-jerk reaction and should plan a Pakistan visit for the proposed January 4 to February 19 tour next year, else India might be isolated.

Pakistan has gone through the same ordeal which had affected hardly in economic terms. Cricket in Pakistan was also affected by this. The Pakistan players are starved of international matches and this is the right time for India and Pakistan to complement each other. With the England team showing it displeasure to play in India; it is the right time for the Asian bloc to show some solidarity by coming together and assuring the world that the sub-continent is safe for cricket.

Miandad said that the PCB is in honest attempts to revive cricket in the country.Terrorism is a persisting problem and PCB is trying to formulate a strategy to give the best security cover to visiting teams.

The former Pakistan batsman said that he felt an urgent need to structure cricket in Pakistan. He added that he is in the process of setting up strict rules and regulations for players and people in the management to adhere to. Miandad, who was notorious in his times for indiscipline on and off the ground, but this time stressed that there will be no place or any player with reckless behaviour and indiscipline in the team.

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