The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : More than pull-out it is the security worry

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More than pull-out it is the security worry

Melbourne: The reluctance of players like Andrew Symonds to tour Pakistan for the Champions Trophy is not an immediate concern for Cricket Australia, which said it’s more worried about whether the tournament can actually go ahead in the trouble-torn country.

“We’re just not at that stage yet of considering that issue,” CA chief James Sutherland said on the possibility of a pull-out by players.

“We’re more interested in ... understanding the security issues and concerns and about whether the tournament will go ahead. Then we get down to the decision for us as to whether we’re comfortable,” Sutherland was quoted as saying by The Age.

CA is particularly concerned about congested roads leading to the tournament venues, lack of thorough checking for women besides the prevalent threat of suicide bombings that have rocked Karachi and Islamabad in the past couple of weeks.

Sutherland said CA was banking on its security experts in Pakistan to give it a clearer picture of the situation.

“We have a high level of confidence in the consultants that have been engaged to work with ICC and the authorities in Pakistan.

“Now it is a matter of getting a better understanding in the coming couple of weeks from those consultants of how successful that implementation has been,” said Sutherland.

Australian skipper Ricky Ponting, his deputy Michael Clarke and Symonds are some of the top players reluctant to go to Pakistan due to security issues. — PTI

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