Captains, Tendulkar invited for PM's banquet

Captains and vice-captains of the Indian and Pak teams plus Sachin have been invited for the banquet being hosted for Musharraf.

The captains and vice-captains of the Indian and Pakistani teams plus Sachin Tendulkar have been invited for the banquet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is hosting for Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday.

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Musharraf will be in New Delhi to watch the sixth and final One-Day International at Feroz Shah Kotla on Sunday along with Manmohan Singh, with whom he will later hold talks.

The coaches of the two teams and the Pakistani team manager Salim Altaf, a former Test pace bowler, have also been invited for the dinner, besides politicians and other dignitaries, said a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official.

"Among the other cricketing guests invited are (BCCI president) Ranbir Singh Mahendra, (vice-president) Rajeev Shukla, (secretary) SK Nair and (former president) Jagmohan Dalmiya," said the official.

Meanwhile, immediately after the fifth one-dayer in Kanpur on Friday, the two teams left for Lucknow for a dinner hosted by Sahara India, the official sponsor of the Indian team.

On Saturday, the Indian and Pakistani teams are scheduled to practice at Harbaksh Stadium in the cantonment area, close to the hotel where the two teams are staying.