English cricket was plunged into its deepest crisis since the rebel tours of South Africa yesterday when Nasser Hussain and his players called for their controversial World Cup match in Zimbabwe to be rescheduled.
In a statement that raises the possibility of a boycott by the 15-man squad and places them in conflict with the England and Wales Cricket Board, the players called on the International Cricket Council to relocate the game to South Africa.
In marked contrast with the ECB, which has repeatedly said it can consider only financial, security and ”cricketing” issues, the players said moral and political doubts over the match had informed their decision.
”The England players urgently request the Zimbabwe match on February 13 be moved to South Africa,” the statement said. ”Without doubt the issues have been weighing heavily on the players’ minds, taking into account the moral, political and contractual aspects.”
In the statement the players cited increasing unrest in Zimbabwe and concerns that the match could be a focus for protests against Robert Mugabe’s government.
”The players are greatly concerned for the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe and especially for opposition supporters, who may be targeted by the police using brute force as indicated by the FCO [Foreign and Commonwealth Office]. It is very important that no Zimbabwean, or any individual, comes to any harm because of a cricket match in Harare.”
The players’ opposition to the game, decided at a team meeting in Melbourne on Saturday, is far more entrenched than the ECB anticipated and leaves the squad in direct conflict with their employer.
The ECB has refused to countenance a unilateral boy cott of Zimbabwe on anything other than security grounds. Yesterday the ECB chief executive Tim Lamb reiterated his view that the game should go ahead and questioned the FCO advice cited by the players.
”I have heard nothing in the FCO advice that conflicts with the ICC’s position,” he said. ”There will be a further meeting of the ICC board on Thursday but at this moment we back the ICC line. The players have not said they are going to refuse to play the match.”
However, Richard Bevan, managing director of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, declined to rule out the possibility of a boycott. It leaves the ECB with little choice but to seek a compromise or face a possible revolt.
When the ICC board met by teleconference last week to review security in Zimbabwe the ECB chairman David Morgan made no attempt to have the match moved, much to the irritation of Bevan and the players. A similar approach on Thursday is now unthinkable.
Lamb gave an indication of the arguments the ECB will employ as he attempted to reconcile the players’ stance with the ICC’s insistence that the game should go ahead.
”One thing cricket cannot afford is for the image of an outstanding sporting event to be marred by scenes of mass demonstrations and protests ruthlessly suppressed with possible loss of life,” he said. ”The ICC would find it very difficult to cope with that. It is very important that nothing should diminish the World Cup.”
If the ICC continues to heed its own security advisors, however, there is little chance of the match being called off. A confidential independent report, commissioned in secret this month, has concluded that Zimbabwe is safe for World Cup matches, despite widespread violence, famine and political unrest.
There is a strong suggestion, however, that the matches due to be played in Kenya will be switched to South Africa because safety cannot be guaranteed. This may be used as a precedent if England push for their match to be re-arranged.
There were signs last night that Ali Bacher, the World Cup committee’s chief executive, was open to the possibility. ”I’m sure the ECB and the ICC will give [the players’] sentiments every consideration. If a request came from the ICC [to move the match], we would be easily able to accommodate that request.”
Meanwhile the first indications that the Australian players share the misgivings of their English counterparts emerged. Their captain Ricky Ponting said: ”There’s a little bit [of concern]. I think there always will be. I don’t know what to expect until we get there, if we’re going. That decision is probably up in the air a little bit.”
In Britain, a campaign to raise £1-million to pay the compensation the ECB would have to pay for pulling out of the match in Harare has been launched by the Aegis Trust and backed by Bob Geldof.
”On a day in which perhaps thousands will die of state-sponsored famine, the English nation as represented by its cricket team will be guests of its perpetrator Mugabe,” Geldof said. ”Against these facts a game of cricket is wholly absurd.” – Guardian Unlimited