Melbourne, Dec. 1: Continuous terror attacks in the sub-continent has cast a shadow over the 2011 World Cup to be jointly hosted by India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh with the International Cricket Council contemplating of keeping a stand-by venue for the mega-event.

According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, the ICC is expected to discuss the issue in its executive council meeting in South Africa next week.

The report also stated that if the ICC decides to shift the event, Australia and New Zealand, the co-host in 2015, are the prime contenders for staging the tournament. Cricket Australia has already started endorsing the idea with chief executive James Sutherland saying safety and security issues surrounding the 2011 World Cup were "bound to come up" in the ICC meeting.

"It hasn’t been talked about but that may well have changed out of this Mumbai incident but one would hope the World Cup and other events that are planned for various places in the sub-continent can go ahead as planned," he said.

"But there will be plenty of things that will need to be planned in the fullness of time." Sutherland said he did not know if another country had already been put on standby for the 2011 tournament, and was non-committal when asked if Australia would have enough time to prepare for the event if handed over.

— PTI