Symonds disappointed with Cricket Australia

MELBOURNE: Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds has expressed his disappointment at Cricket Australia's (CA) decision to censor his newspaper column about the board's sponsorship restrictions regarding the lucrative Indian Premier League.

''Right now a lot of the boys in the Australian side are excited about maybe taking part in the Indian Twenty20 series called the IPL in April,'' Symonds said. ''But we can't quite work out what's going on with the chiefs at Cricket Australia, who seem to be trying to run interference by putting up a heap of red tape.''

''To be brutally honest, as players we just can't understand the stance they've taken. We're all keen to have a hit if the tour of Pakistan gets called off, but Cricket Australia have played what looks like a bit of a trick shot,'' he added.

According to CA rules, all players writing newspaper columns must have their material read and approved by CA Media Director Peter Young who defended the board's decision.

''There are inaccuracies in the column, Andrew does not understand the full story,'' Young said. ''I cannot provide approval for publication. He needs to be briefed on the situation. There will be a player briefing next week.''