LONDON, 29 September 2004 — England have decided to rest Marcus Trescothick and Andy Flintoff from their squad for the One-Day tour of Zimbabwe, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said yesterday.
The pair will join Steve Harmison on the sidelines after the pace bowler asked on political grounds not to be considered for the five-match trip starting in November and which leads into England’s tour of South Africa.
Several England players have expressed reservations about playing in Zimbabwe, including Andrew Strauss, although he has been picked.
“The ECB Management Board yesterday accepted a recommendation from the selectors that three senior players should be rested from the tour to Zimbabwe on cricketing grounds,” ECB Chairman David Morgan told the board’s website. “Andrew Flintoff and Marcus Trescothick both subsequently accepted the invitation to be rested while Ashley Giles declined.”
Zimbabwe have been temporarily suspended from Test cricket after the majority of their first-choice side walked out in a row over selection policy with their national board.
The Daily Mail reported on Monday that coach Duncan Fletcher wanted Vaughan to skip the tour to recharge his batteries but the captain has been included in the 14-man squad.
South African-born Kevin Pietersen was chosen for the first time. The attacking right-handed batsman from Natal, has just become eligible for England after moving to Nottinghamshire in 2001.
The 24-year-old, who also bowls off spin, has a British passport because of his English mother. He was selected for the England academy, set up to fast-track young players towards international honors, in 2003.
Sussex wicketkeeper Matthew Prior has also been selected as back-up for Geraint Jones and could play solely as a batsman.
Flintoff, Harmison and Trescothick all return to a 15-man one-day squad for the South Africa tour with Pietersen and Prior making way.
Fast bowler Darren Gough, 34, has been included in both One-Day squads despite pressure from the media for him to be dropped after he struggled in Saturday’s ICC Champions Trophy final defeat by West Indies.
One-day squad for Zimbabwe:
Michael Vaughan (captain), James Anderson, Gareth Batty, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Ashley Giles, Darren Gough, Geraint Jones, Simon Jones, Kevin Pietersen, Matthew Prior, Vikram Solanki, Andrew Strauss, Alex Wharf.
One-day squad for South Africa:
Michael Vaughan (captain), Kabir Ali, James Anderson, Gareth Batty, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Darren Gough, Steve Harmison, Geraint Jones, Vikram Solanki, Andrew Strauss, Marcus Trescothick, Alex Wharf.
Lawyers Slug It Out in India’s TV Rights Drama
Barely a week before the start of the Test series between India and Australia, there was still no indication yesterday if the matches will be televised — or even if the series will be played at all.
India’s Supreme Court heard arguments on the petition filed by Zee Telefilms against the decision of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to cancel telecast rights which the network insists were awarded to it for the next four years.
The Court, which heard lawyers from both the network and the cricket board, adjourned till today for further arguments. The BCCI is hoping for an early resolution to the case so that the highly-anticipated Test series can go ahead as scheduled with the first Test at Bangalore from October 6.
Neither the BCCI nor Cricket Australia favor the series being played without live television coverage. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has said it is mandatory to provide video footage to assist the third umpire in all international matches.
Zimbabwe Cricketers to Open Batting in Racism Hearing
In Harare, several of the white former Zimbabwe cricketers who were sacked by the Zimbabwe Cricket Union earlier this year will make opening statements alleging ZCU racism when a formal hearing ordered by the International Cricket Council gets under way today.
Their evidence will be preceded by an opening statement from attorney Chris Venturas, who has represented the 15 players in dispute with ZCU ever since the removal of national captain Heath Streak six months ago.
And at some stage he will give evidence of a private nature to allege racism against him personally by ZCU directors. The players wanted a leading advocate, Adrian de Bourbon, but were unable to afford him.
The ZCU is expected to be represented by advocate Chris Andersen, who has been briefed by their own attorney and former President Alwyn Pichanick. The hearing, which is expected to take at least two days, will be held at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Harare, and will be not be open to the press and public.
It will be conducted by the solicitor-general of India, Goolam Vahanvati and a senior South African high court judge Steven Majiedt. They were appointed about two months ago by the ICC after prolonged lobbying by the players for a hearing.
