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 Aussies hope IPL can mend ties with India
11th Apr 2008 14:01 IST
Agencies
Relations between the Indian and Australian cricket team, at an all time low after the acrimonious series Down Under, could be mended during the multi-million dollar IPL, set to start on April 18.
The four-match Test series was marred by a bitter racism row and poor on-field behaviour as well as "obnoxious" comments off it.
Skipper Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, Matthew Hayden and Brett Lee are among a large group of Australians spread across the eight franchises in the cash rich Indian Premier League and it is hoped that the Aussies could regain their lost popularity in India.
Player agent Neil Maxwell has asked the Australians to bridge the gap with the Indians.
"If the players are smart, and already I've seen Matthew Hayden extend an olive branch, they'll use this opportunity ... to be embraced by their local community and then be appreciated by the broader cricket audience in India," Maxwell told 'The Age'.
"There's definitely a level of negativity towards Australian players en masse, but there's an opportunity for Cricket Australia to do something about it, and they need to use this opportunity to build or enhance their brand image during this tournament," he said.
CA chief executive James Sutherland said "The potential is there once they all get together and communicate and understand each other better, it can break down a whole lot of those issues.
"It takes willing parties to do that and I would be very optimistic that our players would be wanting to take that approach." |
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