By IANS
Melbourne : The Australian cricket board is prepared to face dire consequences by sticking to the advice of independent security agencies that have asked them to abandon the tour of Pakistan, the media reported here Thursday.
According to a report in The Age, Cricket Australia (CA) chairman Creagh O’Connor wrote a letter to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) explaining that it has been advised not to send Ricky Ponting’s team to Pakistan because of political turmoil.
CA insisted that they are yet to arrive at a decision and are waiting eagerly for the outcome of the Feb 18 elections in Pakistan. But they are adamant that security assessments will guide the decision and it will not be influenced by potential political fallout.
“We are very sympathetic to the PCB’s concerns and frustrations and passion to see this to tour go ahead, but our pragmatic view is that the decision will be based on the safety and security advice we are given. We haven’t reached that point yet,” a CA spokesman was quoted as saying by the daily.
Australian players including Andrew Symonds have expressed concerns about visiting Pakistan since the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, and a terrorism expert from Macquarie University last week said it would be dangerous to tour Pakistan while Australian troops are involved in Afghanistan.
The PCB continues to protest that sportspeople have not been targeted in the past, that South Africa and Zimbabwe have toured without incident and that Ponting’s men would be protected by road closures while the team travels between hotels and grounds, man-to-man security and bomb-disposal units to search the team bus each day.
Pakistan is adamant the series will not be shifted to a neutral venue as it was the last time Australia was scheduled to tour in 2002. The Australian team has not played in Pakistan for a decade.