ARMED escort . . . a security guard ushers Murali Muralitharan through the arrivals hall as the Sri Lankan team arrives at Adelaide airport yesterday . Picture: Matt Turner

by - Richard Earle
SRI Lanka's squad touched down in Adelaide yesterday with cricket's most controversial figure, Muttiah Muralitharan, attracting an unprecedented escort from a crack federal police unit.

The security was more reminiscent of that accorded a world leader than a cricket team, with a heavily armed police convoy shepherding the Sri Lankans from the airport terminal to the team bus.

Cricket Australia and police said the measure was "routine service" but Murali is no ordinary presence. Similar treatment is now expected around the nation this summer during tours by Sri Lanka and India.

Sri Lanka coach Trevor Bayliss said the team was stunned by the blanket federal police assistance.

"The players certainly weren't expecting it when we got there," Bayliss said, ahead of the tour match against a Cricket Australia chairman's XI starting on Saturday at Adelaide Oval.

Muralitharan's previous appearances in Australia have been unhappy affairs in which he was subjected to racial insults, accused of using an illegal action and had little success taking wickets.

Cricket Australia also fears the Andrew Symonds race-row in India has heightened the threat of payback racial abuse for touring teams this summer.

Cricket Australia public affairs manager Peter Young said he was unaware of any upgrade in security purely to protect Muralitharan, 35, but said the matter would be left to the discretion of Sri Lanka team management.

While not expecting a strong security presence in Australia, Bayliss said it was now the norm in other parts of the world on team tours.

Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene and Bayliss believe Australian crowds will attempt to "ruin" Muralitharan but stopped short of predicting he would be plagued by racial abuse here.

"More than anything it is about them trying to play their part in ruining the best player's performance in the Test series to help their team win," said former New South Wales coach Bayliss of Australian crowds.

Jayawardene submitted that Muralitharan, with 700 Test wickets, deserved better treatment from crowds Down Under, having passed ICC tests on an action that many critics argue is suspect.

"He has gone through everything the ICC has thrown at him," said Jayawardene of Murali, who was first called for "chucking" on Sri Lanka's 1995-96 tour of Australia.

However, Australian skipper Ricky Ponting last night warned Muralitharan could probably expect a few light-hearted barbs from Australian crowds.

"He hasn't played here for a while so he could expect a few more 'no-ball' calls from the crowd," Ponting said.
(Courie rmail )