February 20, 2003	Thursday	Zul Hijjah 18, 1423

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

HARARE, Feb 19: Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower swapped his black armband for a black wristband in the World Cup match against India on Wednesday, continuing a protest against President Robert Mugabe’s government in defiance of the cricket authorities.

Flower had sported the armband in Zimbabwe’s opening Group ‘A’ game against Namibia after releasing a statement “mourning the death of democracy” in the country and calling for an end to human rights abuses.

He and fellow protester and team mate Henry Olonga were reported to the International Cricket Council (ICC) by their national board. The ICC opted not to censure them but asked the players not to wear the armbands for the rest of the tournament.

Olonga was not selected for Wednesday’s match.—Reuters