England players in stand-off over return

The England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed last night that the England team will fly to Abu Dhabi today with the intention of resuming their two-Test tour of India, on the proviso that they get full reassurance over the security plans.

Contrary to much speculation this week the squad, with the exception of the injured Ryan Sidebottom and a rehabilitating Stuart Broad, is the same as that initially selected. Andrew Flintoff and Stephen Harmison, players who were alleged to have told the selectors they would not tour, will travel with the team.

The England selectors will decide on a replacement for Sidebottom while the team are in Abu Dhabi. In the Emirates Pietersen’s side will be joined by eight members of the Performance Squad, principally bowlers, who were also in India when the terrorist attacks took place, and Alan Richardson, the Middlesex fast bowler. Broad suffered a hamstring injury during the fifth one-dayer in Cuttack and his fitness is currently being assessed in Loughborough. If the all-rounder recovers in time he will fly straight to Chennai. Replacements will be picked from those present in Abu Dhabi.

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That those fit enough to travel have done so is a huge fillip for Pietersen, the England captain. When players act independently and refuse to travel it causes division and resentment among a team. The fact that this has not yet happened shows the players have considerable respect for Pietersen. “There has been no twisting of arms, we have had a period of reflection and looked at the facts,” said Hugh Morris. “I think it was very important that Andrew [Flintoff] returned and that we showed solidarity. It is a good show of support for Kevin Pietersen. It is nice to see the players lining up behind Kevin and it is good to see solidarity within the team.

“We have spoken over the last 48 hours with every player on at least two or three occasions, and today [Wednesday] Sean Morris and I spoke to each player together. The only consideration in all our discussions has been the safety and security of the team and support staff. We have been delighted by the input of the PCA and also the willingness of the BCCI to act upon our recommendations regarding security. Those who leave for Abu Dhabi are all anticipating travelling to India if both Sean and I are happy that Reg Dickason’s security plans have been activated.

“Sean and I will be joining our security team in India to make sure the recommendations that were put forward are implemented on the ground. We will see the players in Abu Dhabi at the weekend and provide them with the latest security plans.”

Sean Morris said: “The PCA and ECB have worked extremely closely on this issue and the players have been fully supportive throughout. We will access the highest calibre of security advice on a regular basis so that we can provide the players with the latest accurate information. I have been assured by the ECB that they would never compromise the players’ safety. Hugh and I are travelling to India this weekend to confirm for the players that the security is of the high standard that the ECB and PCA demand.”

The uncertainty that still surrounds the tour makes something of a mockery of the ECB’s comments last weekend, when they allowed Pietersen’s squad to return from India for compassionate reasons. Safety is now the issue and the England players are set to spend three or four anxious days in Abu Dhabi contemplating whether to trust the advice they are given. If the advice is positive but they refuse to travel there seems little point in spending hundreds of thousands of pounds on it in the future, or organising future tours to the region for that matter.

The West Indies confirmed yesterday that they will tour England next summer. Zimbabwe were scheduled to visit but the tour was cancelled when the British Government said it would refuse to give the team visas. Sri Lanka were then invited, but they were forced to withdraw because all their leading players had agreed to play in the Indian Premier League.

Back to India: England Tour details

*Test squad

K P Pietersen (capt, Hampshire)

T R Ambrose (wkt, Warwickshire)

J M Anderson (Lancashire)

I R Bell (Warwickshire)

S C J Broad (Nottinghamshire)

P D Collingwood (Durham)

A N Cook (Essex)

A Flintoff (Lancashire)

S J Harmison (Durham)

M S Panesar (Northamptonshire)

M J Prior (wkt, Sussex)

O A Shah (Middlesex)

A J Strauss (Middlesex)

G P Swann (Nottinghamshire).

*Performance squad: R S Bopara (Essex), M A Davies (Durham), R H Joseph (Kent), A Khan (Kent), S I Mahmood (Lancashire), S R Patel (Nottinghamshire), L E Plunkett (Durham), O P Rayner (Sussex), A Richardson (Middlesex).

*First Test (Chennai): Thursday 11 December to Monday 11. Second Test (Mohali): Friday 19 December to Tuesday 23.