The Sunday Mail
Brighton Zhawi
Sports Reporter
UNDER normal circumstances, the first three months of the year are usually the period when most local cricketers would be busy finalising paperwork to go to the United Kingdom for club cricket.
However, this is not the case, as the coronavirus fallout has been wreaking havoc in sport around the globe.
This is not stumps or an innings break, as the terms go, but there is no cricket to be played, now, or in the near future.
Due to the rapid spread of Covid-19, the game has been suspended.
Cricket is just but one of the sporting events across the world that has been suspended due to the pandemic, and Zimbabwean cricketers have not been spared.
The April-September period usually sees a good number of local cricketers flying to the UK to play club cricket, but this time it is uncertain.
“We hope for the best,” said one local player who is on the books of Bognor Regis Cricket Club in West Sussex.
“I have been communicating with my club and they are obviously saying the league is suspended until further notice.
“It is definitely the right move, considering how the situation is at the moment,” he said, adding that the impact of missing out on the UK club stint is profound for many cricketers.
“We love playing cricket, and also playing over there helps us financially, since we will be off-season here at home.
“So you can imagine the impact on our families, but, like I said, we remain hopeful things will be back to normal soon,” he said.
Rob Humphreys, a popular agent amongst most Zimbabwe players, said they stand guided by the England Cricket Board on the way forward.
“Based on the directives from the ECB, all cricket is postponed indefinitely,” Humphreys told The Sunday Mail Sport.
“Depending on how things pan out, we may have a reduced season, half season or no season.
“Our advice to players has been if you have your visa, do not book flights.
“If you have not done working out your visa situation yet, do not rush and pay for it just yet,” he said.
The World Sports Exchange agent said local players have been acquitting themselves well in the UK.
“I love working with all the Zim lads; I have many clients here and feel that they are just as much my friends as they are my clients.
“Most of the guys have performed very well, so that is always good for business,” he said.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has suspended all cricket until May 28.
“It was agreed that, given the current information available, a seven-week delay to the start of the season is the most appropriate approach,” an ECB media statement said.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) director Hamilton Masakadza told The Sunday Mail Sport that they are working to ensure players are paid their dues.
Zimbabwe players are still owed two months’ salary despite receiving salaries last month.
“The office is on it, it is something they are fixing and we expect to pay staff this month,” he said.
ZC found themselves in a pickle after being suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in July 2019 ostensibly for “Government interference” in the sport, especially after the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) suspended the ZC board led by Tavengwa Mukuhlani.
ICC consequently froze all funding to ZC.
However, the ban was lifted in October last year.
The domestic season hasn’t been without its problems after matches were suspended in January over funding issues.
Although it later resumed, it has again been halted at a time when the season had reached its climax, with defending champions Mountaineers and Eagles fighting for top honours.
Eagles top the table with 28 points from six matches, while Mountaineers have a game in hand on 23 points.
There are eight matches in the season.
The Pro 50 Championship is also incomplete, with Tuskers topping the table on 11 points from five matches ahead of Mountaineers on nine points from the same number of matches.
The last domestic matches were played on March 3 to March 6 when Mountaineers beat Eagles, while Rangers and Tuskers drew their encounter.
Will the season resume?
“It is too early to tell,” said Masakadza.
“We would obviously want to play out our season, but of the current situation, we cannot conclude on anything, we wait and see.”
