Itinerary goof up leaves Indians stranded

Published August 28, 2005

BULAWAYO, Aug 27: Indian cricket team players have stayed put in Bulawayo to nurse their wounds but it is a different matter they would treat this unwanted sojourn as adding insult to injury.

Curious as it may sound, Indians were not able to leave Bulawayo on Saturday because air tickets were not available, as captain Saurav Ganguly explained to newsmen after humiliating defeat Friday to New Zealand in triangular series.

So even as Indian media and other personnel connected with the tour were boarding flight for Harare where action now shifts in the series, cricketers were left to cool their heels in Bulawayo.

So far in the tour, Indians have been left to do catching up — arriving late, overstaying in Harare when they should have been in Bulawayo and now held up in Bulawayo when they should be in Harare.

To add more spice, if not rubbing salt to their wounds, New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming pompously announced his side could do better on a seaming track in Harare than Bulawayo where the wicket favoured batsmen.—Agencies