Ponting voices concern over India one-dayers

MELBOURNE, Feb 8 (Reuters) Australia captain Ricky Ponting has voiced fears that an overload of matches against India could leave Australia unable to play other nations on a regular basis.

Ponting's comments came following news Australia and India are set to play three, and possibly five, matches in Belfast, Northern Ireland this June, in a series designed largely for Indian television consumption.

Indian television's voracious appetite for broadcasting matches across the subcontinent resulted in Australia, India and the West Indies playing a tri-series in Malaysia last year.

It also means Australia will play more matches against India in coming years.

Ponting's side will tour India in October to play seven one-dayers, and then host the same opposition from December in four tests and a tri-series in early 2008, which also involves Sri Lanka.

''From a player's point of view, you'd like to be playing all the teams around the world on a more consistent basis,'' Ponting told Australian news agency AAP.

''But that's just the way it is. That's programming.

''No matter how hard you work at programming, it's pretty hard to get it right 100 percent of the time.

''So if that's what we're confronted with, we just have to do the best we can with it.'' The proposed series in Northern Ireland was announced by the Indian cricket board on Wednesday.

Should the series go ahead, Australia and India could face each other in up to 20 one-day internationals over the next year.

REUTERS PDS BD1811