Butt surprised at lack of support

The new PCB chairman Ijaz Butt has said he was surprised that Sri Lanka and Bangladesh did not openly support Pakistan as the hosts of the 2009 Champions Trophy when the issue was raised at the ICC's board meeting in Dubai last week.

"It was a big surprise to me when Sri Lanka and Bangladesh didn't speak a word when the issue was discussed during the meeting," Butt said. "I was not expecting this from those two countries. After the meeting was over, officials from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh came to me and said 'We are with you', but I told them 'You didn't say this during the meeting.'"

Butt said that India, South Africa, England, West Indies and Zimbabwe openly supported Pakistan to remain as the host of the tournament which is now scheduled between September 24 and October 5 2009. It was originally scheduled for September 2008 but was postponed after South Africa, Australia and New Zealand expressed concerns over the security situation in Pakistan.

Butt said that the venue for the tournament, which will be held in one city, will be decided after India's tour to Pakistan in early 2009.

"Shashank Manohar [BCCI president] has assured me his full support and the tour will be organized as per schedule," Butt said. "The ICC agreed to reassess the security situation after we host India and it is fine with us."