Tensions between England's and India's cricket authorities bubbled over again yesterday as the BCCI tried to get India's tour of England next summer reduced from four Tests to three, and the ECB reacted with uncharacteristic bluntness. Dates for the four Tests, to be held next July and August, were released by the ECB several months ago, and ticket sales are already under way. But that seems to cut little ice with the BCCI secretary, Niranjan Shah, and president, Jagmohan Dalmiya, neither of whom was in office when the original commitment was made in April and May this year.

Shah said: "This is a very hectic tour and we only want to play three Tests. We are happy to play the one-day tournament [also featuring Sri Lanka]. England say their players are busy and this applies to our players as well. We play more cricket than England."

David Clarke, the ECB's spokesman, who is in Bombay as the media relations officer on the England tour, responded categorically: "Four Tests are non-negotiable. At this moment the itinerary is set in stone." Clarke also said: "We have promoted a four-Test Indian series, we have sold TV rights and we are selling tickets."

If a Test were to be cancelled, each of the 18 first-class counties could lose an estimated £200,000 in revenue, while the ECB's proposed inner-city development plan could be curtailed.

The ECB's forthright response is based upon the fact that they had received written confirmation of the Test dates from the previous BCCI secretary Jayawant Lele, and that the issue had not been raised until the recent ICC meeting in Kuala Lumpur. ECB chief executive Tim Lamb later stated: "I have a letter on file from India which confirms their agreement to the programme as proposed. We have correspondence dating back to 1998 saying there would be more than three Tests."

Relations between the two boards have deteriorated since the ECB refused Dalmiya's request for England to play two extra one-day internationals on top of the five they had committed to when they return to India in January. The situation is complicated further by the long-standing frostiness between Dalmiya and ECB chairman Lord MacLaurin.

Tim Lamb confirmed that the ECB desire an amicable resolution but are unlikely to back down. "I'm going out to India to watch the first Test," he said "and I'm looking forward to having further discussions on the matter. But I would hope that if you agree to do something then people would agree to abide by those commitments."

With legal action considered hazardous and ICC intervention unlikely, the ECB, may have to rely on the Sri Lankans, who are touring earlier in the summer, agreeing to play a fourth Test. But that would mean rearranging all the midsummer fixtures since, at the moment, the one-day tournament featuring all three teams falls between the two Test series.

As if to emphasise the point, the ECB today went ahead with publication of the full 2002 fixture list, including all four of the scheduled Tests against India.

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd