BCCI refuses to comment on Zee's pull out of broadcast deal

Mumbai, May 30 (UNI) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCC1) today refused to comment on Zee sports allegedly pulling out of the five-year broadcast deal for matches played by India at neutral venues.

Board secretary Niranjan Shah refused to comment on the alleged pull out, saying he had nothing to say at the moment.

BCCI's five-year broadcast deal with Zee Television has been cancelled, putting the three-match ODI series against South Africa next month in doubt, a report said today.

India were scheduled to play South Africa in three one-dayers in Belfast from June 26 to July 1 besides another against hosts Ireland.

The matches fell under series of 25 games to be played by the Indian team at neutral venues covered by the BCCI-Zee deal worth 219,000 dollars.

But ''the deal was believed to have run into difficulties after a meeting yesterday and the BCCI are now in discussions with another broadcaster,'' a report on the 'Cricinfo' website said.

BCCI Vice President Lalit Modi, in charge of the Board's marketing, was also unavailable to throw light on this latest development, while the Chief Administrative Officer of the cricket board Prof Ratnakar Shetty said he had been receiving calls from the media on the issue, but he could not comment. The right persons to comment on this were the secretary Niranjan Shah or Lalit Modi, he said.

UNI