MacGill told Australia's selectors he had made himself unavailable for the tour because he "did not believe he could tour Zimbabwe and maintain a clear conscience."

MacGill, currently playing county cricket in England for Nottinghamshire, was due to hold a news conference at Durham on Wednesday to explain his decision.

Cricket Australia officials said they understood MacGill's decision and would not force him to tour or banish him from future selection.

However, chief executive James Sutherland said the rest of the team had agreed to go ahead with the tour, in May and June, despite the political turmoil in the troubled African state.

"Our head of cricket operations, Michael Brown, and I have had a number of group and individual discussions with players since before the World Cup and the broad playing group, including with a number who have personal concerns about the ethics and morality of playing in Zimbabwe," Sutherland said in a statement.

"We all understand the difficulty and complexity of the issue, but Cricket Australia, the player group and the ACA (Australian Cricketers Association) have agreed that, on balance, playing Zimbabwe cricketers in Zimbabwe is appropriate for the continued development of cricket as a global sport."

MacGill's decision is a further escalation of the ongoing cricketing crisis in Zimbabwe. Fifteen rebel white players are in dispute with the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) which began when former captain Heath Streak questioned the composition of the selection panel.

The selectors named a weakened side for the current series with Sri Lanka, raising fears of a horrible mismatch when they play the world champions from Australia.

POLITICAL PRESSURE

Several teams, including Australia, have been under intense political pressure to boycott the country as world leaders express serious concerns about the government of Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe.

However, the International Cricket Council has threatened international suspension and a $2 million fine for teams who refuse to tour, unless there are either legitimate safety or security concerns or they are asked not to go by their governments.

England appear likely to tour Zimbabwe in October, despite reservations about the host country's government, after a meeting at Lord's on Tuesday with ZCU chairman Peter Chingoka.

Sutherland said Australia's position was clear: "We go there to play cricket with other cricketers to fulfil our obligations to world cricket through the ICC future tours program, and for no other reason."