IPL is not worth dying for: Bopara

English cricketer Ravi Bopara has indefinitely postponed his trip to India for IPL due to security apprehensions, saying cricket meant everything to him but 'it is not worth dying for.'

Bopara, who was snapped at USD 450,000 by the Kings XI Punjab, was supposed to leave today to join the Mohali-based outfit for this year's Indian Premier League but the Essex cricketer backed out at the last moment, saying he was not sure if the risk was worth taking.

"Cricket is my living and in many way my life. But it is not worth dying for," Bopara was quoted as saying by the Mail on Sunday.

Bopara was worried with Reg Dickason's report in which the security expert raised some serious concerns.

"This is a very tricky call. I have been in touch with the franchise and they are pretty positive that things will be OK. But Reg Dickason's report says something different.

"At the moment I'm nowhere with this decision. I've had some contact with other players. No one has said they are definitely not going, but no one has said they definitely are either. I have pushed back my flight so I can give myself a bit more time to see what happens and whether the security measures are implemented," he said.

"The franchise will want an answer in the next few days, but I will not come to a hasty decision just because I have to. I need to weigh everything up and if I could buy myself even more time I would," added Bopara.

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IPL security- Progress made???

Despite a scathing attack by IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi on Australia’s cricketers the Australian Cricketers Association has claimed progress is being made over security issues. 

"Our security adviser Reg Dickason has been working with the IPL's security adviser, Nicholls-Steyn. They've been working for a few days now on what we've identified as the issues that have come out of various player meetings" ACA chief executive Paul Marsh told 'Cricinfo'.



"Nicholls-Steyn is aware of those and they are working through the issues and we're making some positive progress" he added.

"It's probably looked more positive over the last few days than what it has (before). There's still 15 days to go before the event starts and things can happen very quickly in India, we've seen that over the years".

Australia’s top IPL players had told the Australian Cricketers' Association about their concerns for their safety in India after the bombings in Pune last week during a meeting held in Sydney.

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Ponting-Warne clash on IPL scurity issue

Australian captain Ricky Ponting has clashed with Aussie legend Shane Warne over the safety of Australia’s players during next months Indian Premier League.

Ponting’s war of words with Warne and other former Aussie test players came during a meeting of the Australian Cricketers' Association in Sydney were the topic of player safety in India was discussed.

According to 'The Australian' newspaper Ponting and other centrally contracted players are concerned about traveling to India but the likes of Warne, Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden are happy with the safety arrangements.

"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".

"It is understood the past players, including Shane Warne, Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist clashed with captain Ricky Ponting during the meeting" said a news story in the 'The Australian'.

IPL commissioner Lalit Modi has also waded into the row via twitter suggesting Ponting was pressuring his fellow players not to come to India because he was dropped by the Kolkata Knight Riders during the winter.

After the meeting which was held in Sydney between the ACA and the Australian players contracted to play in India ACA chief executive Paul Marsh confirmed he will give a list of demands to the IPL over player safety.

"From the outset it is important to reinforce that players want to play in this year's IPL, however the independent report has identified some serious concerns with aspects of the current security process" said Marsh.

"Specifically these concerns relate to the reported direct threat against the event and the status and implementation of the IPL's security plan." he added.

"The process from here is for all players associated to meet with their player groups and for all of us to feedback the concerns raised from these meetings to the IPL."

"This will be coordinated through our peak body the Federation for International Cricketers' Association (FICA). From here we will await a response from the IPL."

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Newzealand Players advised to skip the IPL
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Lalit Modi said IPL will not be moved out of India

IPL chairman Lalit Modi said IPL will not be moved out of India,despite security concerns raised in an independent report commissioned by the players' unions in England, Australia and South Africa that led to talk of shifting the tournament to another country, reports published Cricinfo.

"We are going to have the tournament in India. I can't see any reason why we should move it at this point in time. The media is reacting to every fringe group saying security is a problem," Modi told BBC Sport in reaction to the concerns.

The report, written by the England team's security advisor Reg Dickason, said there was a credible threat to the tournament from terrorist groups, raising questions over player safety apart from talk of a boycott by international cricketers. The Australian Cricketers' Association has decided to formulate a list of security demands for IPL organisers, following a meeting attended by most Australian players slated to play in the tournament.

"The process from here is for all players associated to meet with their player groups and for all of us to feed back the concerns raised from these meetings to the IPL," Paul Marsh, the ACA's chief executive said. "This will be coordinated through our peak body the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations. From here we will await a response from the IPL."

Heath Mills, the New Zealand Players' Association chief, also outlined security concerns. "It's one thing to have a security management plan, it's a much different thing to see it delivered and delivered well. It's quite complex when you consider the IPL is played across 12 cities, 12 police jurisdictions throughout India. There are some real concerns around that aspect," Mills said.

Modi, however, underplayed their concerns. "Nobody in the world can safeguard the safety of the players in any tournament. All we have to do is ensure we are putting on the best security," Modi said. "Safety is paramount to us and we are working with the national and state governments to ensure we have good security in place.

"At the end of the day we have to ensure the safety plans we put in place and the way we conduct them are absolutely top-notch."

Modi also said that he was not overly concerned by the possibility of overseas players withdrawing from the event. "The heavens aren't going to fall if that happens. This is an Indian tournament; we have the key Indian players and only a few international players."

"We have no worries at all. You have to understand that the market for us is India. "The tournament is a huge success - we have a huge credibility, we have the top 200 players in the world. It's not only dependent on foreign players, although they are part of it, Modi said.

Newzealand Players advised to skip the IPL

New Zealand involvement in the Indian Premier League has been thrown into serious doubt.
The Herald understands that within the next 24 hours, the players' associations of New Zealand, Australia, England and South Africa will strongly recommend their players pull out of the IPL, due to start in Mumbai on March 12.
While all the players will be able to make their own decisions, the recommendation of the players' associations will be to miss the tournament based on a report by independent security adviser Reg Dickason, which states that a terrorism threat against the IPL is real and "credible".
The report also casts doubt on the ability of the local authorities to deliver security management plans.
NZ Cricket players' association manager Heath Mills would not confirm his organisation's position yesterday but said he had talked to the five players involved - Brendon McCullum, Shane Bond, Jacob Oram, Daniel Vettori and Ross Taylor - to brief them on the report.
He said a statement was likely within the next 24 hours as to the positions of the players' associations and that it would be a united front.

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With contracts ranging from US$750,000 ($1.07 million) for Bond, to US$400,000, the players stand to lose millions in earnings if they refuse to travel.

Stephen Fleming also has a coaching role with Chennai, Scott Styris is contracted by Deccan Chargers but did not make their 23-man squad this year, and Jesse Ryder and Kyle Mills have been invalided out of the tournament.
New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan said he had digested the contents of the Dickason report but the national boards were limited in what they could tell their players.
NZC will likely come under massive pressure from IPL commissioner Lalit Modi and the BCCI, Indian cricket's governing body, to persuade the players to travel.
"I don't quite know how we would do that," Vaughan said. "We stand a little bit aside from this as it's officially a domestic competition and our players are independent contractors ... the [national] boards, per se, don't have a say in this."
Vaughan fought hard to increase the numbers of New Zealanders playing in the IPL, a number that could decrease if there were mass pull-outs, with the existing three-year contracts due to end after this tournament with no guarantee of renewal.
Asked whether he would be disappointed if the players' associations recommended a hard line to their constituents, Vaughan paused before saying:
"I think it would be very disappointing if the IPL did not take place in India this year. If that was to happen, it would not be a good thing for world cricket."
While Hockey New Zealand yesterday gave the all-clear for the Black Sticks to travel to Delhi for the World Cup, the situation is vastly different.
The World Cup is being played at one venue in Delhi, with all the teams staying at one hotel close to the playing venue that will be in virtual lock-down mode.
The IPL is due to be played at 12 venues across India, meaning multiple airline routes, multiple airports, multiple hotels and multiple police jurisdictions.
Last year's IPL was shifted at late notice to South Africa.