Australia coach John Buchanan is confident his side’s six-week South Africa tour will pass without any contentious issues both on or off the field.“We will take every possible precaution against any disciplinary incidents but we hope to leave South Africa unscathed,” Buchanan told a news conference at the team’s hotel in Johannesburg on Tuesday.“Our recent record has been pretty well exemplary, with just the odd incident, and the management will reiterate the same approach, but we won’t be doing anything more than normal.”The tourists have encountered trouble with crowds in South Africa before and claims that several of the Proteas side were racially abused during the recently completed Australia tour have only added to the tension.“Nasty things have been said . I have lost respect for one or two of their players,” South Africa wicketkeeper Mark Boucher was quoted as saying in The Wisden Cricketer magazine this week.“I hope our public give them a bit of stick, because we’ve taken a serious amount. In the past our crowds haven’t been too great with them, but trust me, we’re not going to sit back and say ‘shame, poor things’.”Australian captain Ricky Ponting offered a different perspective. “There is no dislike between the two teams and the cricket this (southern hemisphere) summer has been played in very good spirits and I’m sure it will continue in that manner,” he saidWicketkeeper and vice-captain Adam Gilchrist said his team was delighted to be in South Africa and were not expecting excessive abuse or provocation. “Obviously a lot has been said about the incidents in Australia, but I don’t think that’s going to lead to anything more drastic here,” Gilchrist said.“There’s a lot more spoken about what happens on the field than what actually happens on the field. The hospitality in South Africa is second to none and we really enjoy being here. Everyone seems so genuinely happy to see us here.”Australia will be going into the first match of the tour, a Twenty20 international at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday, without batsman Mike Hussey or pace bowler Glenn McGrath. McGrath has withdrawn from the limited-overs section of the tour, which also includes five one-day matches, to spend more time with his sick wife.Hussey, meanwhile, has remained in Australia as his wife is expected to give birth this week and the middle order batsman is hoping to join up with the squad before the first one-day international in Centurion, Pretoria on Sunday. Ponting is disappointed by McGrath’s absence but is confident his team will cope. “I couldn’t be much happier with the way Nathan Bracken and Stuart Clark have stepped in and stepped up,” the captain added. (Reuters)Majola asks Safs to support teamDurban: Meanwhile, South Africa’s cricket chief has called on the public to rally round the Proteas during the home series against the Australians. “The Proteas are going to need the support of all South Africans when they take on the world champions”, CEO of Cricket South Africa Gerald Majola said today.“It was tough playing away in Australia and Graeme and the boys are looking to turn the tables in the standard bank ODIs and the Test matches here at home. An important ingredient for them will be the full backing of South African cricket fans.Referring to the racist remarks allegedly made at the Australian grounds, Majola said “we also want to show that one can support your nation fully and vocally, without resorting to racially abusing your opponents as happened to the Proteas in Australia.” (PTI)
