Muralitharan arrived this week for his first full Australia Test tour in 12 years, braced for a chilly reception from fans as he bids to break local hero Shane Warne’s Test wicket record.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Friday that plainclothes security officers would be sent to sections of Australian grounds near Muralitharan’s fielding positions to swifty identify and eject trouble-makers.
There are fears the Sri Lankan could receive unsportsmanlike treatment in Australia, where he has been called for ‘throwing’ on two previous tours and subjected to constant crowd calls of ‘no-ball.’
Cricket Australia said its existing crowd monitoring programme, introduced after South African players were racially abused two years ago, would protect Muralitharan.
“There’s not a specific Muralitharan protection programme,” Cricket Australia public affairs manager Peter Young said.
“But we have a national programme to ensure that we have a family friedly environment in cricket, and as part of that we do have plainclothes people in crowds.
“We (also) have closed circuit television and any spectator who subjects a player to inappropriate behaviour will be detected and ejected very, very quickly.”
Murali needs just nine wickets to overhaul Warne’s 708 Test scalps in the Test matches in Brisbane and Hobart starting on November 8 and 16.