By IANS,
Melbourne : Australian players are apprehensive about touring India for next year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) after the Mumbai attacks but those among them who know the country say that India is a “very resilient place”.
While England have decided to resume their tour to India under heavy security cover, some senior players of Australia, including vice-captain Michael Clarke, are uncertain about visiting India due to security concerns.
Clarke said that security was one of the issues he had to weigh up when considering signing with the IPL.
“I have a lot of things to consider,” Clarke was quoted as saying in The Australian.
“Obviously I have to think about the amount of cricket we are playing, I am trying to plan a wedding as well and I have to think about what has happened there recently.
“I am going to play this Test series (against South Africa) and then I can sit down with Lara (his fiance) and my family and make a decision. I certainly would love to be part of the IPL, but it is a matter of timing. If I am right to go I will look forward to that.”
Clarke was one of very few players who did not rush to cash in on the Indian Twenty20 during last year’s player auctions.
The report also claimed that other players too said the attacks on the Taj Mahal Hotel, where they had stayed many times, had created anxiety about playing in IPL scheduled in April-May.
One player manager said he had not been approached by any IPL-contracted cricketers with security concerns, but admitted that they would all be nervous.
“If something happens around one of the teams I think the cricketers will head for the hills and I can’t blame them,” he said. “However, India is a very resilient place and tends to bounce back from these sort of things.”
The T20 Champions League was to be held in the week after the Mumbai attacks but was cancelled.