Lalit Modi underplays Shiv Sena threat to Australian players

Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi on Friday underplayed the threat by the Shiv Sena towards Australian players during the staging of the tournament.

Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, writing in an editorial in the Sena's mouthpiece Saamna on January 13, called for a ban of the Australian cricket team playing in Maharashtra.

Thackeray's comments followed unending violence against Indians in Australia.

"There are obvious threats from last so many years, by many people, you can continue to write about threats, I mean that's it. We have to take precautions that we need to take and we are taking precautions that we need to take," Modi said.

The organisers also shifted the venue for the opening IPL match from Hyderabad to Mumbai, coming in the backdrop of an agitation over the separate state of Telangana.

"We would of course without doubt like to have matches in Andhra. But that does not mean we would not have a back-up plan, we will keep a back-up for every eventuality, for every city. We will not like to move the schedule, if we can help not to move the schedule," Modi said.

A number of Australian players including captain Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Andrew Symonds, Mathew Hayden and Michael Hussey are due to play in this year's IPL.