Racism hearing likely to be delayed

The ICC hearing which will investigate claims of racism levelled against the Zimbabwe Cricket Union is set to be delayed after the rebel players complained that they did not have sufficient funds to match those available to the board.

Last week, the ICC announced that the hearing would take place between September 29 and October 1. But the rebels subsequently found out that the ZCU apparently appointed Chris Anderson, a leading criminal defence specialist, to represent it, and so they sought their own specialist. A report claims that they asked Adrian de Bourbon, another leading laywer, to represent them but did not have the funds to pay his fees.

The rebels have long argued that the resources available to the two parties are far from comparable and that the board, who can indirectly draw on ICC funds it receives to finance their costs, have a distinct advantage. A spokesman for the rebels said that they had asked the ICC to help with legal and travel costs, but added that the ICC had been "tardy about helping us."

The rebels' spokesman also indicated that he believed the hearing will last nearer to five days, and as a neutral venue has yet to be identified he added that he envisaged that there could be as much as a fortnight's delay before it actually started.