The show must go on

John Buchanan and Ricky Ponting: honouring their board's commitments © Getty Images

Australia's cricketers have been briefed on the latest situation in Zimbabwe and will fly out to the country on Thursday with neither fear nor regret, John Buchanan, their coach, has declared.

"I wouldn't think there is any concern," Buchanan said at a pre-tour camp in Brisbane. "Basically Cricket Australia, and virtually all the information we have from a security point of view, has allayed anybody's fears. I think that's pretty fair to say."

The players were updated on Monday on the state of play in Zimbabwe by Tim May, head of the players' association, and Cricket Australia's operations manager Michael Brown.

"I'm sure every player and all of us think about the issues and come to their own conclusions," Buchanan said. "But in the end we're invited there as cricketers, we're invited there through the ICC programme. Zimbabwe cricket wants us there and Cricket Australia honour those commitments. We go there as cricketers and that's what we're trying to do."

It is only a week since batsman Darren Lehmann hinted at a deeper clash of conscience within the Australian team: "We are not a political side," Lehmann said, "but I would be lying if I said there wasn't a concern about the whole scenario."

However, Buchanan indicated that if any players had serious concerns they would have expressed them by now. So far, only Stuart MacGill has pulled out of the tour. Lehmann did not attend yesterday's briefing because he is playing county cricket in England.

Buchanan made his comments before last night's latest dramatic twist, when Zimbabwe's 15 rebel white players were sacked by the national board for not returning to work. The move seemingly ensures that a third-string Zimbabwe side, similar to the team slaughtered recently by Sri Lanka, will meet world champions Australia in a farcical mismatch. Apparently it matters nought.

"I guess we're still waiting to see what the make-up of the [Zimbabwe] team will be once we get to Zimbabwe," Buchanan said. "But whatever that is we're going there to tour and play Test matches and one-day cricket and everybody' s committed to doing that."

Indeed they will not only play but help out where possible, with players and coaches willing to stage coaching clinics and offer any other off-field assistance where desired. "If that presents itself and security is not an issue," said Buchanan, "we'll dive at it."

Buchanan meanwhile stood up for Sri Lankan's champion offspinner Muttiah Muralitharan, who has been lauded and besieged in equal measure since breaking the world Test bowling record last week.

"He's a class bowler," said Buchanan, "and class bowlers should be able to bowl how they see fit." He described the recent biomechanical testing of Murali's doosra as "more a bit of a grease and oil change than anything else".

The Australians leave for Zimbabwe on Thursday morning, playing two Tests and three one-day internationals.