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'Safety' still a prime concern for Aussies, says Ponting

By Staff

New Delhi, Sep 22 (UNI) As the 15-member Australian team arrived at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai, today for the four-Test tour, captain Ricky Ponting asserted that safety of the team would remain a prime concern after a series of bomb blasts in the capital here on September 13.

The Australian team decided to go ahead with the tour only after the security situation was reviewed in India by its inspection team following the blasts that has rocked the New Delhi killing 25 people.

Ponting stressed that the safety of the touring party would continue to be monitored throughout the tour.

''With the state of the world and the state of some of the countries that we're playing in, it's vitally important that me as captain and all the players in this national team are kept in the loop as much as possible and as often as possible,'' the right haneded batsman was qouted as saying by Cricket Australia's website (www.cricket.com.au).

However, the World Cup Champions' tour of Pakistan and the high-profile Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held this month in Pakistan was postponed until next year because of the security concerns voiced by many participating teams.

On Saturday, a suicide truck-bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad killed 60 people.

''It is an absolute shame that things like this continue to happen in Pakistan because, believe it or not, as players you want to travel all round the world and you want to play in all the conditions around the world,'' Ponting said.

''Unfortunately right now at the moment there's no way that we can be touring Pakistan,'' he maintained.

The Aussies will take on India in the first Test on October 9 in Bangalore. The remaining Tests will be played in Mohali, Delhi and Nagpur.

UNI PY RAR BD1825

Story first published: Tuesday, August 22, 2017, 12:44 [IST]
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