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Vaughan threatens to pull out of Zimbabwe

Michael Vaughan says England will pull out of Zimbabwe if they are used as political pawns

Wisden Cricinfo staff
27-Nov-2004


'The team will not be put in a position to shake any government member's hand' said a weary Michael Vaughan © Getty Images
Michael Vaughan says England will quit their tour of Zimbabwe if they are forced to meet the President Robert Mugabe.
England are scheduled to play their first one-day international on Sunday, as part of a revised four-match itinerary. But the ECB has issued a reassurance that if attempts are made by the Zimbabwean government to use the England team as "political pawns" then they will be free to leave the tour.
"It's been made clear before the tour and we have just had confirmation from (ECB chairman) David Morgan that the team will not be put in a position to shake any government member's hand", said Vaughan. "David has confirmed to me that none of the players and certainly not myself will be put in that position and we have a plan if that does happen.
"All we've seen so far of Zimbabwe is the hotel, a restaurant and a cricket ground. I said I wasn't looking forward to visiting the country, but now we are here to play cricket and I enjoy playing cricket and I'm looking forward to playing four games with a young team."
Vaughan also revealed that he was unhappy with the way that some of the younger players had been caught up in the decision-making process as the controversy has rumbled on. Ian Bell, Matt Prior and Kevin Pietersen are all on their first senior tour.
"I feel a lot more sorry for the young players in the squad on their first tour than I do for myself. There are guys making their debut tours seeing things around the cricket field which they really shouldn't be seeing and being involved in meetings they shouldn't be involved with," Vaughan added.
"They've had to be involved in a couple of meetings this week, but we have tried to keep them clear of a lot of it and try to keep them focused."