Eyes_Only
International Debutant
Looks like teams will forfiet their World Cup points according to this report...My only question is...What happens if someone should be killed??
Eyes...
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Taken from www.baggygreen.com.au
Zimbabwe boycott teams will forfeit points
John Mehaffey - 29 December 2002
LONDON (Reuters) - Teams refusing to play World Cup matches in Zimbabwe next February will forfeit their points, International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Malcolm Speed has said.
"If the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) said that they weren't going to play that game because they have been told by their government that they are not to play that game, they would forfeit the points," Speed told a news conference in Melbourne.
"That has happened before."
Australia and West Indies forfeited points at the 1996 World Cup when they refused to play in Sri Lanka because of bomb blasts in Colombo before the start of the tournament, hosted by India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
England, Namibia, India, Australia, the Netherlands and Pakistan will play a match each in Zimbabwe in the World Cup starting next February.
Speed defended the world governing body's decision to stage the six matches in Harare and Bulawayo despite the deteriorating political and economic situation in Zimbabwe.
"In administering cricket we can't take into account whether one government has a bad relationship with another government," he said. "We can't be swayed by these sorts of considerations."
But Speed did give some hope to teams with genuine safety concerns about their players and officials.
"It is being finalised over the next couple of days, whereby they could obtain a ruling as to safety and security," he said.
"It will go to the event technical committee, in the first instance, with the right of appeal to an appeals commissioner.
"If the ruling was in their favour that it was unsafe to play, they would share the points with Zimbabwe."
SPORTING CONSIDERATIONS
Speed told Sky Sports the ICC had discussed the present situation in Zimbabwe.
"We can only make our decision based on cricketing considerations and sporting considerations," he said. "We have 84 member countries that have come under all sorts of political regimes.
"It will be a good tournament for Zimbabwean cricket. As one of the 10 full-member countries of the ICC, they've earned the right to host these matches and there are a lot of dedicated cricket supporters and cricket administrators who want these matches to go ahead.
"We actually think that cricket will bring some pleasure to a lot of people in Zimbabwe in difficult times. We're aware of the political difficulties, we're aware of the economic difficulties, but they're factors that we don't take into account."
On Saturday, Britain's International Development Secretary Clare Short criticised the decision to play matches in Zimbabwe as "deplorable and shocking".
"An election has been stolen and people are being starved because they dared to vote freely," she said.
The Foreign Office issued a statement saying it was Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's personal view that it would be better if England did not play in Zimbabwe.
England chairman of selectors David Graveney, who is also chief executive of the English cricketers' trade union, the Professional Cricketers' Association, said if he were asked to go to Zimbabwe he would refuse.
"I'm speaking purely as an individual," he told The Mail on Sunday. "I'm not in a position to persuade others not to go and I don't think that would be right.
"But if somebody asked me, David Graveney, to visit Zimbabwe, I would say 'No'."
© Reuters
Eyes...
==============================================
Taken from www.baggygreen.com.au
Zimbabwe boycott teams will forfeit points
John Mehaffey - 29 December 2002
LONDON (Reuters) - Teams refusing to play World Cup matches in Zimbabwe next February will forfeit their points, International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Malcolm Speed has said.
"If the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) said that they weren't going to play that game because they have been told by their government that they are not to play that game, they would forfeit the points," Speed told a news conference in Melbourne.
"That has happened before."
Australia and West Indies forfeited points at the 1996 World Cup when they refused to play in Sri Lanka because of bomb blasts in Colombo before the start of the tournament, hosted by India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
England, Namibia, India, Australia, the Netherlands and Pakistan will play a match each in Zimbabwe in the World Cup starting next February.
Speed defended the world governing body's decision to stage the six matches in Harare and Bulawayo despite the deteriorating political and economic situation in Zimbabwe.
"In administering cricket we can't take into account whether one government has a bad relationship with another government," he said. "We can't be swayed by these sorts of considerations."
But Speed did give some hope to teams with genuine safety concerns about their players and officials.
"It is being finalised over the next couple of days, whereby they could obtain a ruling as to safety and security," he said.
"It will go to the event technical committee, in the first instance, with the right of appeal to an appeals commissioner.
"If the ruling was in their favour that it was unsafe to play, they would share the points with Zimbabwe."
SPORTING CONSIDERATIONS
Speed told Sky Sports the ICC had discussed the present situation in Zimbabwe.
"We can only make our decision based on cricketing considerations and sporting considerations," he said. "We have 84 member countries that have come under all sorts of political regimes.
"It will be a good tournament for Zimbabwean cricket. As one of the 10 full-member countries of the ICC, they've earned the right to host these matches and there are a lot of dedicated cricket supporters and cricket administrators who want these matches to go ahead.
"We actually think that cricket will bring some pleasure to a lot of people in Zimbabwe in difficult times. We're aware of the political difficulties, we're aware of the economic difficulties, but they're factors that we don't take into account."
On Saturday, Britain's International Development Secretary Clare Short criticised the decision to play matches in Zimbabwe as "deplorable and shocking".
"An election has been stolen and people are being starved because they dared to vote freely," she said.
The Foreign Office issued a statement saying it was Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's personal view that it would be better if England did not play in Zimbabwe.
England chairman of selectors David Graveney, who is also chief executive of the English cricketers' trade union, the Professional Cricketers' Association, said if he were asked to go to Zimbabwe he would refuse.
"I'm speaking purely as an individual," he told The Mail on Sunday. "I'm not in a position to persuade others not to go and I don't think that would be right.
"But if somebody asked me, David Graveney, to visit Zimbabwe, I would say 'No'."
© Reuters
