October 26th 2001
ENGLAND TOUR TO INDIA
EVER PRESENT DANGERS

How can the average England supporter be expected to understand how Nasser and the rest of the touring team are feeling about being in India, while 500 miles away the major world superpower wages war on the Taliban. There are dangers all over the world, some that we are probably not even aware of.

We have lived in fear of IRA attacks in our own country over the years, in a paranoid sense there is danger all around us, the obvious example is crossing the road, but again how we we feel faced with the somewhat paranoid media coverage, balanced against furthering Test cricket careers is something only the chosen 16 can understand.

A sense of balance is required, there is money on the line, not just for this tour, but future appearance money. The news that a no show by England will also cost the ECB dearly will be a big factor in their thinking. Yet personal safety is surely at the forefront of the ECB's and every players thoughts, and the wishes of loved ones and especially families. Cricket is job for these people, their main livelihood, but in the end, there is more to life than donning whites and running around a field. Did I just say that, having loved the game with a passion for 16 years? Well it's true.

The level of danger can not be quantified, the chances are surely in favour of an England Test team having no troubles at all whilst playing in India. I mean what exactly are the possibilities? A tour of Pakistan, as has already been judged is out the question, but the fact that by all accounts the tour will go ahead, and that the majority of the team think it is safe, leaves me to believe that surely there are no direct dangers, and that the team could flee the area quite quickly if need be.

In cricket terms, it is important for England to regroup and continue the gentle upward curve of success, dealt a deadly blip by those dastardly good Aussies this summer, but then who realistically expected anything less. In the new Test world, where every series suddenly matters, it is pertinent to strike while the iron is still at least warm, and considering that India are in somewhat of a transitional phase themselves now is as good a time as any to pay a visit.

Just be thankful, this is not like a tour of old, where there were more warm-up games (soon to be abolished I am sure, as there will be no time for these 'unnecessary' matches!), plus the bonus that the one-day series now has its own mini-tour. I hope everything goes ahead, not just because I love cricket, but common sense says that, we would surely have discovered by now if there was a real danger of attacks.

Richard Kendall