MUMBAI (AFP)
Two thousand police were deployed Sunday at the Wankhede Stadium in Bombay at the final match in the one-day series.

Police in the western Indian town stepped up security after newspapers here reported that Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar had been the targets of kidnapping threats.

"The security is tight for every spectator as well as cricketers of both the teams. We have deployed 2,000 police officials who will take care of all the security measures required at the stadium," said Bombay police commissioner M.N. Singh.

Singh denied there was any specific threat to Tendulkar and Ganguly, but added, "Their security is fully taken care of". However police sources claim that the two cricket stars have been provided with private bodyguards after reports that they could be kidnapped by Dubai-based underworld don Aftab Ansari -- a suspect in the attack on an American cultural centre in Kolkata last month.

"Security has also been provided at Sachin's residence here. There is no way we are taking any chance as far as security is concerned of every single cricketer," said a senior police official on condition of anonymity.

Mumbai police have been on high alert for the past week after a tip off from India's Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) of a possible terrorist attack on the city. The alert followed the Calcutta attack which left five people dead and 19 injured.

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd