INDIAN Premier League team owner, the Bollywood movie star Preity Zinta, has promised to respect any player's decision to pull out of th...
INDIAN Premier League team owner, the Bollywood movie star Preity Zinta, has promised to respect any player's decision to pull out of the competition this year as concerns over player safety continue to grow.Zinta and her partner, Ness Wadia - great-grandson of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan - are the major stakeholders in the $110 million Kings XI Punjab club, which is based in Chandigarh, near the border with Pakistan. Zinta said she expected the team's overseas stars, including Sri Lankans Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara - who were involved in the recent attack in Lahore - as well as Australians Brett Lee, James Hopes, Shaun Marsh and Simon Katich, to "be just as enthusiastic this year as they were last year".
However, she added: "As an Indian and an IPL team owner, I completely respect any concerns they may have and, if they made the decision not to come, I would respect that, too."
After a highly successful inaugural competition last year, the IPL is facing big challenges, including the threat of terrorism and global financial problems.
However, Zinta believes IPL organisers must be resolute because the competition is so important to India.
"There has been a lot of confusion and panic, especially since the attack in Pakistan on the Sri Lankan players," Zinta said.
"We're going to have to confirm a revised schedule … The BCCI and the government have been very particular that they don't want it to coincide with the election. But it is going to happen and just as security was our No.1 priority last year, it will be this year, too.
"Terrorism today is a universal problem, not just limited to certain countries … The objective of terrorism is to make people panic and stop them from living the life they want to live.
" If you live in fear you let them win."
Asked if she was confident international players would return, Zinta said: "Absolutely. I think the international players, including in our team, will be just as enthusiastic as they were last year. I've been in touch with Mahela and his family and they are looking forward to coming to India. I think everyone's going to be there.
"There's an old Indian saying: 'The one that saves you is greater than the one that kills you'. I think it's written and in your destiny what's going to happen. You cannot stop living your life."
However, she added: "If there is a one-off situation where a player decided not to come, we would respect that. It's an individual's decision. But, as an Indian, I do have faith in India."
On the financial crisis, which has struck team sponsorships, Zinta said: "Obviously there are big problems financially. But recession is also a time when alcohol, entertainment and sport always go up. This year when the IPL is played, films will stop coming out because last year the cinemas were empty during the tournament.
"Also no new television shows will be released during the IPL. People in India love the IPL and are really excited about it. It's so important to India.
"Of course there will be some companies that will cut down on their budgets. But as we get closer to the IPL, a lot of companies are looking to the competition as a platform to launch new campaigns and strategies because they know it will be the biggest event on TV and on the ground.
"I don't think anything can get in the way of the IPL."
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