BCCI shifts second ODI from Vizag to Nagpur

The Indian Cricket Board on Monday shifted the second one-dayer of the five-match series between India and Sri Lanka to Nagpur after police in Visakhapatnam expressed inability to provide security for the tie in the wake of political crisis in Andhra Pradesh.

Agitations are on in Andhra Pradesh over the issue of the formation of a separate Telangana state.

"The second ODI of the five-match series between India and Sri Lanka has been shifted to Nagpur. The match will be a day-night affair, and will be played on the scheduled date of 18 December 2009," BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said in a statement.

Early in the morning, Visakhapatnam Police Commissioner Sambhasiva Rao said that it will be difficult for them to provide the required security staff for the hosting of the match.

"The prevailing situation is such that all the city police are deployed in the maintenance of regular law and order. And to conduct the match in ordinary circumstances we need to deploy 80 percent of the city force

"We have mentioned it to organising locals here that it not possible for us to commit any amount of force for the conduct of the match at this stage," Rao told reporters in Visakhapatman.

As the local police admitted inability to provide a fool-proof security for the one-dayer, the Saurashtra Cricket Association offered to host the troubled match.

"We are ready to host the second match. Both the teams are already here. If Indian Cricket Board tells us, we have no problem in hosting the match," Shah said.

However, BCCI decided to shift the second match to Nagpur instead of holding it in Rajkot.

Earlier, amid rumours of cancellation the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) had on Saturday said the match will be held as scheduled despite the Telangana crisis.

"The match is very much on. All arrangements are in place and we will start sale of tickets from Monday," ACA president Gokaraju Gangaraju told PTI from Vijayawada.

"We have spoken to the Joint Action Committee that is organising the protests and it has assured us that the match will not be disturbed," Gangaraju added.

Rumours started spreading that the second ODI would be cancelled after the scheduled sale of tickets for the India-Sri Lanka match was put on hold.

"We are discussing the possibility of either shifting the match to another venue or cancel it altogether due to the ongoing political crisis. A decision will be taken soon," sources said.

Andhra Pradesh has been on the boil ever since Home Minister P Chidambaram said that the process for the formation  of a separate state of Telangana would be initiated and a resolution would be moved in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.

The Home Minister's announcement came after Telangana Rashtriya Samiti chief K Chandrasekhar Rao went on a fast unto death demanding the creation of Telangana.

Chidambaram's announcement stoked a political furore in the state with even the ruling Congress party divided over the issue.