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Pakistan are still hoping against odds that India will travel to Lahore in October to play in the Golden Jubilee Test.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has slotted the Golden Jubilee Test between Oct 26 and 30. The country celebrates its 50 years of Test cricket on Oct 16 and wants India to come and share the celebrations. Pakistan had played the inaugural Test against India at New Delhi's Feroze Shah Kotla ground.

Ironically, India had turned down the proposal when the PCB floated the idea in March. "Certainly this is not the time for resumption of such cricket ties," Indian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Nirupama Rao said on March 8.

India last year backed out from its commitment of playing the Asian Test Championship match against Pakistan in Lahore and before that, had cancelled a scheduled tour to Pakistan. India is now, according to the ICC 10-year calender, is programmed to tour Pakistan from April 7 for three Tests and five One-day Internationals.

"We will send a fresh invitation and hope they will give due consideration to it," a PCB official said.

India participated in Pakistan Golden Jubilee of Independence in 1997 and played three One-day Internationals at Karachi, Hyderabad and Lahore. Prior to that, Pakistan appeared in a tri-nation series in India when India celebrated their 50 years of Independence.

Meanwhile, TransWorld International (TWI), PCB's official broadcasters, have expressed disappointment that their contributions to Pakistan cricket were being undermined.

TWI's contract with the PCB expires next March and there are indications that Abdul Rehman Bukhatir's Ten Sports will get the fresh rights.

"We earned PCB a profit of $3.75million in four years from the Sahara Cup alone. Besides, we also offered $1million for the National Cricket Academy and the same amount to take domestic cricket to television. But we never heard from them," a spokesman of the TWI said.

TWI, last week, earned the broadcasting, marketing and event managers rights of Abu Dhabi Cricket Club that is affiliated to Abu Dhabi Cricket Association and owned by Sheikh Mubarak Al Nahiyan, nephew of Sheikh Zaid Bin Sultan Al Nahiyan, ruler of UAE.

The club's cricket stadium will be inaugurated in July. The Club has contacted all the cricket boards and have received encouraging response. The club plans to hold the first more than two team competition sometime next year.

© Dawn