da dobrowin： The next 14 months would keep the Indian cricketers busy as the teamis scheduled to play as many as 22 Tests and over 40 One-dayInternationals during the period
28-Jun-2001The next 14 months would keep the Indian cricketers busy as the teamis scheduled to play as many as 22 Tests and over 40 One-dayInternationals during the period.After returning from the on-going tour of Zimbabwe, the Indians willplay three Tests each against Sri Lanka, South Africa and England, allbefore the end of this year.The team will also play a minimum of three matches (and a maximum offour should they qualify for the final) in the Asia Test championship,two against Zimbabwe in India and four each in West Indies and Englandnext year, a BCCI source said in Mumbai on Thursday.During this period, the team is also expected to turn out in a maximumnumber of 41 ODIs which means the players are expected to be on thefield once every 72 hours on an average which makes for a hecticschedule, the sources added.Added to this hectic playing schedule is the amount of air travelwhich, put together with the time spent on the field, can be reallytiring.In case the BCCI approves the three-match one-day series in Melbourneand Brisbane, the team may have to travel to the African continentstraight from Australia for the gruelling tour to South Africacommencing on October 2 and featuring three Tests and a triangularseries with Kenya as the third team.Earlier, the Indians will take on Sri Lanka in a three-Test series inJuly-August to be followed by a triangular event also involving NewZealand which is scheduled to end on September 2.Then comes the Asian Test Championship match with Pakistan before theIndians travel to Australia for the three-match Super Challenge 2001and from there on to South Africa.The Indians are scheduled to come back from South Africa only towardsthe end of November and are slated to play a three-match series inDecember against England. The Englishmen are to return home in timefor Christmas before coming back for a five-match limited over seriesagainst India in January, 2002.Zimbabwe would arrive next in February-March for a two-Test seriesrubber followed by either a five-match bilateral series (between Indiaand Zimbabwe) or a 13-match quadrangular event featuring these twoteams along with Pakistan and the West Indies which is at a planningstage now.Two more Tests, against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, need to be played bythe team as part of the ATC during this period before the team leavesin April for the West Indies.The team will return towards the end of May before embarking toEngland for a tri-series involving Sri Lanka as the third side,followed by the Test series.