India, Pak show support for Zimbabwe

A Pakistan cricket board official has said they will send their "A" team to Zimbabwe from Aug. 20 as planned, regardless of any sanctions that might be taken next week against the African nation by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The Indian cricket board has also pledged support to troubled Zimbabwe, a senior cricket official said on Saturday.

On Wednesday, the England and Wales Cricket Board called their 2009 tour of Zimbabwe off under instructions from the British government over the growing violence before Friday's presidential election run-off.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) has already suspended all bilateral programmes with its southern African neighbour.

The ICC's annual conference begins on Sunday in Dubai and South Africa's outgoing ICC president Ray Mali has placed Zimbabwe on the agenda of a two-day meeting of the ICC Board, the highest decision-making body, starting on Wednesday when Zimbabwe could face a ban from international cricket.

But an official of the PCB told Reuters on Saturday that Pakistan would go ahead with their scheduled "A" team tour.

"Our tour will take place and our team will play two four-day matches and three one-dayers regardless of what transpires at the ICC meeting," the official said, declining to be named.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Niranjan Shah told the Web site cricinfo (www.cricinfo.com): "We are very clear that we would like to fully support Zimbabwe on the issue of full membership of the ICC."

Shah added: "We're aware that some member boards want Zimbabwe's membership taken away, but we are with Zimbabwe on this.

"However, we also understand the positions taken by ECB and CSA as they were prompted by the advice of the governments in those countries. We do not blame them as they are bound by what their governments decide."

The influential Indian board's stand is seen as crucial because any resolution in Dubai would require the support of seven of the 10 full members.

"We will go by our government's guidelines, which will be applicable to specific tours and interactions with Zimbabwe, but nothing has come so far," Shah added.