Australia's tour opener moved to Nagpur

The opening three-day match of the forthcoming series against Australia has been switched to Nagpur from Baroda in Gujarat.

"It will be played in Nagpur," Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Jaywant Lele said on Tuesday.

At least 20,000 people are estimated to have been killed in a devastating earthquake that hit Gujarat last Friday.

Nagpur is located in the neighbouring state of Maharashtra, which was unaffected by the earthquake.

The three-day match is scheduled to start on February 17 after Australia arrive in India on February 14. The itinerary features three Tests, five one-day internationals and two three-day games against local sides.

The revised itinerary:

Feb 17-19: three-day match, Nagpur
Feb 22-24: three-day match, Bombay
Feb 27-March 3: first Test, Bombay
March 6-8: three-day match, New Delhi
March 11-15: second Test, Calcutta
March 18-22: third Test, Madras
March 25: first one-dayer, Bangalore
March 28: second one-dayer, Pune
March 31: third one-dayer, Indore
April 3: fourth one-dayer, Visakapatnam
April 6: fifth one-dayer, Goa

Mail Cricket Editor