South African cricketers are reluctant about playing the series against Pakistan

A report in the British Newspaper ''Telegraph'' claimed, quoting an unnamed player, that senior South African cricketers are reluctant about playing the series against Pakistan and might make themselves unavailable for selection. CSA's chief executive Gerald Majola, however, insisted the tour would go on as scheduled.

Tony Irish, the South Africa Cricketers Association chief, told the newspaper that "many players" had expressed concerns to him about the tour, though he did not go further. "The fact that there are now further incidents under investigation is not good news," Irish said. "This all needs to be dealt with urgently in order to ensure that a heavy cloud of suspicion and doubt doesn't hang over our series against Pakistan."

Irish avoided answering whether he was aware that some senior players were reluctant to tour, saying only, "Let's hope it doesn't come to that."

Gerald Majola, CSA's chief executive

Gerald Majola, CSA's chief executive, said'' No player had expressed any reservations to the board about participating in the series. When asked what CSA's stance would be if any players chose to be unavailable, Majola said: "This is an official bilateral tour governed by the ICC FTP agreement, signed by all member countries, therefore it is an ICC-sanctioned match. The ICC has not cancelled the tour and are dealing with the matter through the ACSU. We therefore have no reason to call off the tour."