No cheerleaders in Cuttack ODI

The fifth One-Day International to be played between India and England Nov 26 in Cuttack will have no showcase of glamorous bikini or even sari clad cheerleaders applauding the cricketers.

The Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) had earlier decided that for the first time ever city's Barabati Stadium will witness cricket with a touch of glamour. The hot new quotient of the game was sought to be localised by putting cheerleaders in Indian saris.

But an OCA official said the association later chose against having the pinch of glamour -- not even in traditional attires -- in the ODI.

"(Board of Control for Cricket in India) BCCI had no objection to it. But it requires the consent of the match referee (Roshan Mahanama) who will arrive here Nov 24," OCA secretary Ashirbad Behera said.

"If we prepare (cheerleaders for the game) and the referee rejects our proposal at the last moment, there will be a lot of confusion. That is why we decided to cancel the programme," he said.

However, it is being widely speculated that the OCA's latest decision comes after opposition from a group of moral activists and insiders.

Cricket first saw cheerleaders when business tycoon Vijay Mallya's IPL team took the field in Twenty20 IPL championship earlier this year.