Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

A decision will be made in March on whether the Black Caps tour to Zimbabwe will go ahead in June, the head of New Zealand Cricket says.

This year's tour was postponed until June 2010 because of political instability in Zimbabwe.

Advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is that New Zealanders should avoid non-essential travel to Zimbabwe, which is classed as a high-risk destination.

New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan says an assessment will be carried out to determine whether there's a security risk to players.

Consultations with the Government will begin next month, to decide what stance to take at the International Cricket Council (ICC) meeting in March, he says, when a final decision will be made on whether the tour should go ahead, be postponed or be scrapped.

Under ICC rules, a team can only withdraw from a sanctioned tour for health and safety reasons, and must pay a penalty unless it has been forced to withdraw by government order.