June 09, 2007	Saturday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 23, 1428

KARACHI, June 8: The India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh cricket boards will discuss the possibility of reducing the duration of the 2011 World Cup.

Officials from the four South Asian Test-playing nations, who will co-host the next World Cup, will meet in Pakistan on June 18, a senior Pakistan Cricket Board official said.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has spoken about reducing the duration of the

2011 tournament following criticism that the 2007 World Cup held in West Indies in March and April dragged on too long.

“We have heard talk from the ICC about possibly reducing the number of days in the next World Cup. So we will look over it at our meeting,” Saleem Altaf, director special projects of the Pakistan Cricket Board, said.

“We would like to form a consensus on this issue before we start our meetings with the ICC.”

Saleem added that the four host countries had shortlisted 15 venues, which had to meet standards set out by the ICC.

India is due to host 22 matches in 2011, including the final, with Pakistan staging 14, Sri Lanka nine and Bangladesh six.—Reuters