Cricket: NZ says no to Kenya trip

By RICHARD BOOCK

New Zealand Cricket yesterday blankly refused to send its World Cup team to Kenya, saying it was not prepared to knowingly place players' lives in jeopardy.

Only half a day after the International Cricket Council gave the go-ahead for the three matches in Nairobi, NZC said it was duty-bound to protect the safety of its team, and would use every legal means possible to justify its stance.

The decision, which relates to New Zealand's first-round match on February 21, could mean a US$1.5 million ($2.7 million) penalty for NZC, and private litigation from disgruntled stakeholders.

It also means that New Zealand's chances of qualifying for the second round of the tournament are now worse than ever, given that they were counting on the flag points from the probable win.

The tournament's chief organiser, Ali Bacher, said late last night that New Zealand's World Cup match against Kenya would not be switched to South Africa and the Black Caps would forfeit their points.

But NZC chief executive Martin Snedden said last night that his organisation would vigorously defend its decision against playing in Kenya, and would fight any attempts to impose penalties.

"We believe the decision not to play in Nairobi is justified and we'll be doing everything in our power to prove it," he said.

The decision not to play in Kenya follows travel warnings from British, United States, Australian and New Zealand advisories, security warnings about terrorist cells operating in the area, and reports that Western interests were already being targeted.

In November, the Kenyan city of Mombassa was rocked by a terrorist attack in which 16 people were killed at a hotel - only minutes after two missiles narrowly missed an Israeli airliner taking off. Five years ago, bomb attacks on the United States Embassies in Nairobi and nearby Dar-es-Salaam killed hundreds.

Snedden said the dispute would "probably not" end up in court but would still be vigorously defended, and made it clear that his organisation would not bend to outside pressure, whether financial or political.

"NZC won't back down on this. The information is on the table, everyone's analysed it, and there's been hard, strong evidence from reputable sources.

"There's compelling evidence of terrorist cells operating in the area that have both the capability and willingness to carry out an attack on Westerners, and we'd be irresponsible to ignore that."

Sri Lanka have expressed no concern about playing in Nairobi on February 24, but are not seen to be as likely a target as the New Zealanders.

Foreign Minister Phil Goff said yesterday that the situation was tricky for NZC, but he understood the reasoning behind their decision.

"The greater potential concern is the threat of al Qaeda terrorist attacks.

"Two serious terrorist attacks have occurred in Kenya, causing hundreds of casualties, and there are ongoing reports about the presence and intent of terrorist groups," said Mr Goff.

The clear intention of terrorists was to target Westerners in a manner that generated maximum publicity.

He suggested the present controversy might have even heightened the threat by giving the World Cup a bigger profile.

"The generalised threat to Western interests in Kenya is reflected in the Australian advice to defer non-essential travel, and in the British and US advisories to be vigilant and avoid large crowds."