Delhi serial bomb blasts : Will the Aussies come?

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No question of Aus tour being cancelled: BCCI BCCI's senior vice president Rajiv Shukla has ruled out cancellation of Australia's cricket tour to India following the serial blasts in New Delhi on Saturday. Speaking to rediff.com, Shulka said, "There is no question of the tour being cancelled." More... No question of Aus tour being cancelled: BCCI Onkar Singh in New Delhi September 15, 2008 10:20 IST BCCI's senior vice president Rajiv Shukla has ruled out cancellation of Australia's [images] cricket tour to India following the serial blasts in New Delhi [images] on Saturday. Speaking to rediff.com, Shulka said, "There is no question of the tour being cancelled." He said India being the host country had the responsibility to provide adequate protection to players of the visiting country and our security agencies are capable of providing protection to the Australian squad. "We can organise a meeting between Australian officials and our security agencies, and we would send them satisfied," he added. There were reports in national dailies that the Australian board was rethinking whether to go ahead with the tour or not. "Blasts are taking place around the world, including London [images], but you don't stop playing cricket. If the Australians want to send a team of security officials to see things for themselves we have no objection," Shukla said. The team is expected to land in India in the last week of September and spend one week in Jaipur [images] before the tour gets underway. One of the Test matches is to be played in Delhi.

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'India tour on unless otherwise persuaded' : CA Cricket Australia says that Saturday's blasts in New Delhi will have no impact on Ricky Ponting's team's upcoming India tour, unless it is otherwise persuaded. More... India tour on unless otherwise persuaded: CA Press Trust Of India Melbourne, September 15, 2008 First Published: 12:11 IST(15/9/2008) Last Updated: 15:23 IST(15/9/2008) Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday said Saturday's serial blasts in New Delhi will have no impact on Ricky Ponting's team's upcoming India tour, unless it is otherwise persuaded. He said Australia's tour is on and as scheduled, the team was planning to leave for the subcontinent on September 21. "Our position is that the tour is going ahead unless we are otherwise persuaded," CA's General Manager of Public Affairs Peter Young said. "Our advice is there are some concerns and to exercise caution, but currently they do not compromise the tour. Our plan is to depart on September 21 subject to our advice," he added. CA officials are scheduled to meet the representatives of Australian government on Monday to take an update on the safety situation in India. CA's General Manager of Cricket, Michael Brown is also expecting a report on Tuesday from team's security advisor, Reg Dickason, who was asked to compile an urgent report on the security situation in India. Australia A is currently in Hyderabad for a one-day tri-series, involving India A and New Zealand A teams. Meanwhile, the senior Australian team is scheduled to play warm-up games in the cities of Jaipur and Hyderabad, which were rocked by bomb blasts last year and CA is hoping to collect more information on the situation in the country from members of the A squad. "The threat assessment for India has been considerably lower than that of Pakistan," Australian Cricketer's Association Chief Executive, Paul Marsh was quoted as saying by the Australian media. "We want to find out if the latest bombings will change that in any way and what our independent experts think about our Australia A players being over there at the moment. "As always we'll rely on the advice of the experts. Our primary concern at the moment is the A team being over there and trying to get an idea whether it's an acceptable risk for them to stay," he said. Marsh also said the threat perception towards India is not as bad as in neighbouring Pakistan but he expects some criticism if Australia embarks on India tour as per schedule. "I expect there will be heat if we decide to tour," said Marsh. "If the team stays in India, there might be some who criticise us for double standards. But people need to understand our starting point is that we always want to tour. "We go to extreme lengths to obtain the best advice on the situation of each country we visit. In Pakistan's case this year, people we rely on told us not to tour. If they say not to tour again, we'll listen. Bombs going off anywhere are a concern," he said.

[Dinx - the Jinx]

Fully concur. High time the Indian Govt showed some backbone, cancelled the trip on its own and get down to what it is supposed to be doing - Defending its citizens.

i fail to understand wat is the connection!!! cricket is run by bcci and security is with the govt... wel, if the aussies refuse to tour, then that can push the govt to take the matter seriously and get into sme ral action. however, govt on its own shud not buc down and cancel the tour. that would send a wrong message

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Pakistan irked as Aussies to tour India Pakistan cricket chiefs have lashed out at Australia's "double standards" following the decision to proceed with the upcoming four-Test tour of India despite the recent New Delhi bombings. More... Pakistan irked as Aussies to tour India September 16, 2008 - 7:37PM Pakistan cricket chiefs have lashed out at Australia's "double standards" following the decision to proceed with the upcoming four-Test tour of India despite the recent New Delhi bombings. The Australians haven't toured Pakistan for a decade because of security concerns but the impact of deadly bomb blasts in the Indian capital hasn't changed the forthcoming tour's status. "I think if Australia tour India it will only highlight their double standards on security issues," said the PCB's chief operating officer Shafqat Naghmi. "Pakistan is as safe a country as India and we had even promised state-level security for the Australians and other teams. "We have said constantly terrorists attacks can take place anywhere. "No country is safer than the other and this point was highlighted after the unfortunate and sad incident in Delhi. "We find it hard to comprehend that when Australian cricketers can tour a country which has had a succession of bomb attacks what is so different about coming to Pakistan." The decision has further heightened tensions between the PCB and Cricket Australia (CA). Australia's 2002 tour of Pakistan was relocated to neutral venues and Ricky Ponting's team's scheduled tour earlier this year was abandoned because of ongoing concerns. And Australia were one of four nations that voiced concerns that effectively forced the postponement of this year's Champions Trophy in the Muslim state. Cricketers from Australia and New Zealand have this week taken to the field in India, seemingly shrugging off security concerns in the nation. Australia's 15-man squad is due to leave for India this weekend with the first Test starting October 9 at Bangalore. Australia are due to play warmup matches in Jaipur and Hyderabad with both cities having been the targets of bombings in the past 13 months. Australian Cricketers' Association chief executive Paul Marsh responded to the PCB's comments by saying the body had been guided by information from independent security experts. "We rely on the independent people to give us the advice and it is nothing about India or Pakistan over this, it is about the situation in any given country," he told AAP. A Cricket Australia spokesman said security had already been upgraded for the current Australia A tour and would remain in place for the senior team. He said the decision not to tour Pakistan and to go to India was based on the available security information. "Dispassionately we have received different information on those different countries," the spokesman said.

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Aussie tour of India still in jeopardy Security concerns in the wake of a series of bomb attacks could still scupper the Australian cricket team's upcoming tour of India. More... Aussie tour of India still in jeopardy September 17 2008 at 03:02PM Canberra - Security concerns in the wake of a series of bomb attacks could still scupper the Australian cricket team's upcoming tour of India, captain Ricky Ponting indicated Wednesday. The team and officials will constantly monitor the situation with the assistance of the Australian government ahead of their scheduled departure this weekend, Ponting said. "Anything could happen tomorrow, things change very quickly in the world right at the moment," he told reporters in Canberra. "Cricket Australia will continue to be in touch and the government will continue to be in touch, and Cricket Australia will keep us players and the players' association in the loop on a daily, if not hourly basis." Cricket Australia said on Tuesday the tour would go ahead despite five coordinated bomb blasts which ripped through crowded markets across the Indian capital on Saturday evening, killing more than 20 people. The 15-man squad is due to leave this weekend with the first of four Tests starting in Bangalore on October 9. Delhi will host one Test match from October 29. Ponting said Australia's foreign affairs department had been providing detailed information to Cricket Australia about the security situation. Cricket Australia general manager Michael Brown rejected claims that the tour of India would go ahead despite the bombings because of money or the power of Indian cricket's governing body. While there were reciprocal obligations with India in terms of tours, security would always be central to deciding whether a tour went ahead. "The only reasons we can't play and participate is for security reasons and we'll keep monitoring those as time goes by," Brown said. Cricket Australia's decision to go ahead with the tour of India drew scathing criticism from Pakistan on Tuesday. Australia was one of the nations that declined to tour Pakistan this month for the International Cricket Council's Champions Trophy on security grounds, which led to the tournament being put off by a year. Australia also refused to undertake a Test tour of Pakistan in March-April for similar security fears. Pakistan Cricket Board chief operating officer Shafqat Naghmi said their decision to tour India smacked of double standards. "Pakistan is as safe a country as India and we had even promised state level security for the Australians and other teams," Naghmi said.