Smith calls on ICC to step up security

Graeme Smith has called on the ICC to take hands-on responsibility for all cricket tours in the wake of terrorists targeting the Sri Lanka team in Lahore. The combination of the Lahore shootout and the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November has left some international players jittery about touring in the region and Smith said it was time for the ICC to become more proactive.

"We've got a massive tour to India next year after England, IPL is around the corner so from our perspective I would like to see security become a decision across the board," Smith said in Durban. "I think the ICC need to regulate it and they need to play a bigger part in it and ultimately take more responsibility for the security of touring teams."

Smith's South Africa was the last team before Sri Lanka to visit Pakistan for Tests, in October 2007. Smith said as his players remembered back to that trip they were imagining themselves in the same position as the Sri Lankans, whose bus was attacked on the way to the Gadaffi Stadium on Tuesday.

"Our squad was pretty emotional about it," Smith said. "I think we could relate to it in a way having recently in the last year and a half toured Pakistan and gone through a lot of the emotions of touring a place like that.

"Having turned down going back to Karachi for various reasons and having all that security around us, we could almost picture ourselves sitting on a bus. I don't think you could have a picture of rockets going past the corner of your bus, but you could sort of relate to it."

Smith said the players would no doubt be concerned about visiting the subcontinent for the IPL and the World Cup in 2011 but it was important not to make hasty decisions. He said his squad would continue to take the advice of Cricket South Africa and its security consultants.

"We need to view it with an open mind in regards to the 2011 World Cup but I certainly know the emotions that are flying around at the moment, the guys don't want to be going back to a place like that," Smith said. "That's what we need to look and trust the people around us like we always have to make the right decisions.

"I don't think any of us want to risk our lives for a situation. The whole area has been a touch volatile but we're not going to pre-judge now and say no we're not going to go [to the IPL], yes we're going to go. We're going to take it like we take every tour."