Indian Premier League's (IPL) most expensive player Kevin Pietersen has joined the ever growing list of overseas players, who are considering pulling out of the lucrative Twenty20 league on grounds of security.
"I will be consulting as many people as I can but if I don't think it is right, then I will not be going," the former England captain was quoted as saying by the News of the World, on Sunday.
Pietersen was bought by liquor baron Vijay Mallya's Bangalore Royal Challengers for a whopping $1.55 million. Pietersen said that after the Mumbai terror attacks and the Lahore incident, where gunmen sprayed bullets on the Sri Lankan cricket team's bus, players will be more mindful of their own security when they travel to the subcontinent.
"After this final Test against the West Indies, I will be speaking to Bangalore, to the ECB, to my agent and to security advisors. Then I will be a lot clearer in my thoughts than I am now. Since the terror attacks in Mumbai we are all now more mindful of our own security arrangements," he said.
The England team under Pietersen was touring India when the Mumbai terror attack took place and left the tour mid-way. But in a remarkable gesture they came back to play in the Test series.
{{/usCountry}}The England team under Pietersen was touring India when the Mumbai terror attack took place and left the tour mid-way. But in a remarkable gesture they came back to play in the Test series.
{{/usCountry}}"Hopefully, the security will come right for India, but if everybody pulls out of the IPL then it would be a disaster, a catastrophe and world cricket would really be on a down. India is the force behind most of world cricket but there are things we have to go through before we go," he said.
On the situation in Pakistan, Pietersen said: "I think, at the moment, it is unlikely people will be comfortable travelling there. It is very, very sad - I feel sorry for the Pakistan cricketers."
"I feel sorry for everybody in Pakistan but everybody thought sportsmen were safe, they thought cricketers were safe but obviously they are not. I am shocked, it is a tragedy and a catastrophe - not just in sport but in the world. I don't think anyone would want to travel to Pakistan at the moment," he said.