Distressed by the turmoil in Pakistan following former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto’s assassination, Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds says he is “seriously” considering pulling out of next year’s tour to the troubled nation.“I’m not interested in going into a situation that’s dangerous, where people are getting killed and hurt. There’s no point in that in my opinion,” Symonds was quoted as saying in the Daily Telegraph.“I’m giving it some serious thought. At the end of the day, it’s a game of cricket. I take my cricket very seriously and I love playing for Australia but I’m not going to put myself in a situation where I can be harmed. There’s no need, not for a game of cricket,” he added.Australia are scheduled to play three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20 match in Pakistan in March. Although Cricket Australia (CA) has asserted that the tour will go ahead as scheduled, Symonds insists that players are a worried lot.The Pakistan Cricket Board has made it clear that it will not shift the series to a neutral venue like 2002-03 and assured security “above that of visiting prime ministers” for the Australian players. But the Aussie concerns about security remain high.
