Cricket: Journalists on sticky wicket

New Zealand journalists may not be free to report openly on the Black Caps' cricket tour of Zimbabwe in August.

Media wanting to cover the tour will have their visa applications vetted by the Zimbabwe Cricket Union, sparking fears that President Robert Mugabe may again try to ban reporters or organisations he does not like.

England last year had to threaten to cancel its one-day tour of Zimbabwe before some media were allowed into the country.

The Herald had not planned to send a reporter to cover the tour.

The main newspaper agency, the New Zealand Press Association, said yesterday it would not go to Zimbabwe because of the threat of censorship, and risks to reporters.