The coach of the English national cricket team Duncan Fletcher and captain, Nasser Hussain, refused to be drawn on their concerns about playing in Zimbabwe when they and the team arrived in Johannesburg on Tuesday evening.
Hussain said the team’s concerns about travelling to Zimbabwe had been addressed in the lengthy statement issued on Monday, in which the team urged cricket bosses to move the February 13 match against Zimbabwe in Harare to South Africa.
When pressed for comment, Hussain said he was not prepared to go any further than the statement.
Commenting on a suggestion that England could not afford to sacrifice any points by refusing to travel to Harare, Fletcher said there was a possibility that the match might be played in South Africa.
Hussain said he had very fond memories of his first tour to South Africa, and the team was looking forward to the tournament. He said they had not requested any extra security, because they believed the security provided in South Africa was perfectly adequate.
Hussain said morale in the English team was very high, despite their difficult tour of Australia.
”Every team that has toured Australia recently has been given a tough time, and I think we have learnt a lot that we can now put to use,” he said.
Hussain said that it might be slightly over-the-top, but he was almost pleased that England had lost their last closely-fought match against Australia in the final of the Victoria Bitter Series.
”We came back very strongly, and put up a great fight,” he said.
”Of course, we should have won that game, and there should have been a third final, but I was very pleased with the vibes in and around the dressing-room after the match.”
Hussain said England had finished the tour strongly, and needed to maintain the momentum. Three or four players were coming back from injury, and would provide the side with fresh impetus.
England will have a three-day break from cricket, relaxing and playing golf at Sun City before travelling to Port Elizabeth to start their preparations for the World Cup.
Hussain said the free time would enable the players to regroup and focus on the task ahead. The players were all looking forward to playing in the most important tournament for the past four years.
Hussain said it would be difficult to predict a winner of the World Cup.
”Obviously South Africa and Australia will be hard to beat, but any of the top teams are capable of winning.”
He said the outcome would depend on the key games. The team that won the key games was likely to win the tournament. ”It’s all about peaking at the right time,” he said.
Commenting on the English team’s concerns, Dr Ali Bacher, executive director of the International Cricket Council World Cup, said on Tuesday that it was extremely unlikely that the match England was to play in Zimbabwe would be moved to another venue.
”In my opinion it is highly, highly improbable that the ICC will change its viewpoint,” he told the National Press Club in Pretoria.
On Tuesday, Bacher said Zimbabwe’s police commissioner had consistently assured ICC executive Malcolm Speed, members of the world cup security directorate, and a senior SA Police Service member that it would be safe for players, umpires and referees to go to that country to play cricket.
”He also ensured people from abroad, particularly those from the United Kingdom and Australia, that when they come into Zimbabwe to watch cricket they will be safe.”
Bacher said the matter would probably be discussed at an ICC board meeting on Thursday. Also expected to feature at the meeting was New Zealand’s concerns about its team’s fixture in Nairobi.
”As of last week, there was no comprehensive security plan in Nairobi for the two World Cup matches. Obviously that is not acceptable.”
The ICC had given Kenya until the end of this week to submit such a plan, which was expected to happen on Tuesday. The board would discuss it on Thursday, Bacher said.
”It’s simple. If in their opinion it is not safe for players to go to Kenya, there will be no world cup cricket there…
”I’d like to believe they’ll want the two matches to take place in Kenya.”
On the question of whether the organisers had any alternatives in mind should the ICC decide to move the matches in Zimbabwe or Kenya, he said there were many contingency plans.
”I really don’t want to suggest that we’re going to go that route.” – Sapa