Thaindian News

Melbourne, Feb 25 (ANI): The Australian Cricketers Association has been accused of applying double standards in the handling Australian cricketers going to play in terrorist danger areas in India.

Former Test star Damien Martyn said one policy applied to players going to danger areas when they were on official tours and another when they were freelancing in competitions such as the Indian Premier league.

“There are different agendas happening,” Martyn wrote on his regular Twitter entries.

“(Australian players) have toured placed with (the possibility of terrorist attacks) over our heads but when it’s for your country it is a different policy,” The Courier Mail quoted him, as saying.

“For example when, at the 2005 Ashes, a bomb went off in London, we were in Leeds that day but drove to London that night. Then, in a secret meeting, CA said if one more bomb goes off we would go home and not complete the Ashes,” Martyn wrote.

“As history shows, another bomb went off and we couldn’t leave. Why?

“The reason was the Ashes was too big and (there was) too much money. Any other country we would of (sic) left,” he adds.

Earlier, Australian cricketers, who stand to lose millions of dollars if they don’t participate in the IPL, clashed with skipper Ricky Ponting during the meeting held at a Sydney hotel to brief them about security during the Twenty20 tournament.

Conflict over whether to attend next month’s IPL tournament saw Australian players attacking each other during a security briefing.

There is a split among the freelance former Test cricketers who want to attend and Cricket Australia-contracted players who want everybody to work as one on the issue. (ANI)