Thaindian News

Wellington, Feb 24 (ANI): New Zealand pacer Shane Bond is keeping an open mind on playing in the Indian Premier League despite the lucrative Twenty20 tournament being targeted by terror threats.

Al Qaeda last week made threats towards next month’s IPL as well as the hockey World Cup and the New Delhi Commonwealth Games.

Bond has much to gain from the IPL, as Kolkata Knight Riders shelled out 1.07 million dollars for his services at last month’s player auction but he needs to play to collect his cheque, The Dominion Post reports.

The IPL is scheduled to start in India on March 12, but Bond is preparing to make a last-minute call after his involvement in the series against Australia ends on March 13.

“It’s a month down the track so all I’ve focused on is this series and I’ll let all the stuff that’s happening behind the scenes take care of itself. A month is a long time in sport and I’ll make a decision when that time comes,” Bond said.

New Zealand’s Players Association and their counterparts in Australia, England and South Africa commissioned a report from Australian Reg Dickason, who is a security expert on sporting events on the subcontinent.

New Zealand Players Association boss Heath Mills on Tuesday outlined grave concerns contained in the report.

“There have been threats against cities in India, and clearly a direct threat against the event. A combination of those and our lack of confidence in security management plans have led us to ask some questions of the IPL and see whether they can alleviate those concerns,” Mills said. (ANI)