While BCCI made it clear that they will not play in the United Arab Emirates and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) refusing to play in India, the only feasible option left was the island nation, which will act as the neutral venue.
With only a month's window available after India finish their Test Series against South Africa on December 7, the series is likely to be confined to three ODIs and two T20 Internationals instead of the original two Tests, five ODIs and two T20 Internationals, according to top BCCI sources.
Without duvulging any details, both Sethi and Khan had said yesterday that the meeting with Manohar was "fruitful" giving an indication that the deadlock on the marquee series was broken.
"Since PCB will need the permission of Nawaz Sharif before going official, Shaharyar Khan will need to go back to Islamabad and seek the Prime Minister's permission. Once he gets the green light from the PM, he will again come back to Dubai and intimate his decision to Clarke. Clarke is likely to officially announce the series on November 27," the source told PTI today.
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The two stadiums earmarked for the series are Khettarama (R Premadasa Stadium) and Pallekele (Kandy). While the receding monsoon has hit the island nation badly, the weather forecast for the last part of December looks good.
While some T20 matches are scheduled at the Khettarama, the SLC will reschedule them at the first notice, once the official announcement is made.
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BCCI president Manohar is very much against India playing international matches in UAE. In fact Manohar was also a vocal critic when the first part of IPL was shifted to the UAE last year due to the general elections.
In fact, a recent ODI match between Pakistan and England came under scanner with former England captain Michael Vaughan expressing his suspicion through a series of tweets which he later removed.
However ICC Chief Executive Dave Richardson downplayed the incident stating that there is no reason to be suspicious about the match.