Jagmohan Dalmiya has said that England must finalise the make-up of their tour party by November 5 -- or pay the price. He has warned that India will consider pulling out of their tour of England in 2002 if England fail to turn up as arranged on November 14. According to reports, Dalmiya, the President of the Board of Cricket Control in India, is keen to end the uncertainty surrounding the tour. "We want them to announce the team," he said. "Otherwise, we'll have logistical and administrative problems in making arrangements for the tour. The announcement of the squad will put a final full-stop on whether the tour is on or not."

England are still waiting to hear whether five of their players - Andy Caddick, Robert Croft, Ashley Giles, Marcus Trescothick and Craig White - have decided to make the trip or not. "Until then doubts about the fate of the tour will keep floating around," said Dalmiya.

But the ECB quickly rejected the deadline. "We are not going to be in a position to set a deadline for the five players," said their media relations officer Andrew Walpole. "We are hopeful the situation will be resolved in the next few days."

Dalmiya's ultimatum is the latest deadline to attach itself to the tour. England's players were told they had to make up their minds by 12 noon last Friday, but five waverers still emerged. Those five were then given until after the weekend to decide by ECB chief executive Tim Lamb, but nothing has been heard yet. This was after two of the five, White and Giles, had been told they could have until November 7, when they would undergo a fitness test.

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