The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Sri Lankan team’s security beefed up

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Sri Lankan team’s security beefed up

Colombo: The Sri Lankan cricket team’s security in Australia has been heightened after some unruly fans in Hobart attacked spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan with an egg.

“The Australian authorities have apologised for the incident and the Sri Lankan team’s security has been beefed up,” Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) secretary K. Mathivanan said.

Showing no let-up in their hostility towards Muralitharan, a group of fans threw an egg on his face in Hobart on Friday night.

The incident marked a new low in Aussie fans’ turbulent relations with Muralitharan.

Mathivanan said Cricket Australia will also keep a close watch on crowd behaviour during the ongoing tri-series in which Sri Lanka is one of the teams along with Australia and India. “Australian authorities will keep an eye on the hotel’s security. They have already announced that any misbehaving fan would be thrown out of the ground,” Mathivanan said.

Muralitharan has had a history of hostility with the Australian spectators, who have jeered him on previous tours, forcing him to stop going Down Under for some time.

The off-spinner was no-balled by Aussie umpires and the bowler had to undergo laboratory tests to prove the legality of his bowling action. — PTI

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