ICC threaten Australia with fine

Cricket Australia have been warned that forfeiture of this year’s tour of Zimbabwe could incur a £1million penalty from the International Cricket Council.

Australia are due to play three one-day internationals in Zimbabwe in September but are coming under pressure to boycott the trip for political reasons.

The Archbishop of Bulawayo last week urged Australia Prime Minister John Howard to stop the tour while Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer has called on the players to take a stand and not travel.

Sports tours to Zimbabwe continue to cause controversy due to the reviled regime of Prime Minister Robert Mugabe, but the International Cricket Council are maintaining their anti-political stance.

England were in a similarly invidious position prior to the 2003 World Cup when government and public opinion were against them travelling to Zimbabwe but the ICC threatened sanctions if they did not.

The ICC insisted then that security concerns were the only justification for cancelling tours and they are taking a similar stance now, reminding Australia of their obligations under the future tours programme.

Zimbabwe have temporarily withdrawn from Test cricket but they retain full one-day international status, meaning teams are committed to playing them in home and away series every six years.

An ICC statement read: “A member that does not comply with its obligation to tour another member is subject to a penalty of a minimum of US$2million or such greater amount that the host member can prove to have lost as a result of the failure to tour.

“If there are circumstances likely to give rise to a serious risk of death or personal injury to the players and/or officials due to take part in the tour concerned or in respect of which appropriate insurance is unavailable on reasonable terms, such circumstances constitute acceptable non-compliance.”

The ICC also point out a direct government order not to tour would also constitute “acceptable non-compliance” but them merely expressing preference not to tour would not.