Zimbabwe not to travel to Bangladesh for T20 tri-series

HARARE: Zimbabwe will not be able to stage their domestic competitions in the coming season, or fulfil their Future Tours Programme (FTP) itinerary and other international obligations, including the tour to Bangladesh for a T20I tri-series that was to include Afghanistan in September, according to a statement released by Zimbabwe Cricket on Saturday.

For their part, the Bangladesh Cricket Board has suggested that Zimbabwe’s participation in the tri-series is up to ZC, and they themselves remain fluid in their response to the situation. If Zimbabwe do not travel, as seems likely, the tri-series will turn into a bilateral affair.

Zimbabwe’s suspension from the ICC this week has also jeopardised men’s and women’s teams’ participation in the T20 World Cup Qualifier 2019.

“The ICC had also awarded Zimbabwe the right to host another global qualifier event next, but that now hangs in the balance,” ZC’s statement read.

“In all this, players and staff are bearing the brunt of the standoff and they might be forced to go for months or forever without their salaries and match fees,” the statement continued.

Sikandar Raza had said that the ICC’s actions had brought an end to his and several other cricketers’ careers, while all-rounder Solomon Mire has already announced his retirement from international cricket.

Zimbabwe’s isolation has also thrown the women’s side, which won the Africa Region T20 qualifying tournament in May, into disarray. Their tour to Ireland was cancelled at the last minute, while it appears impossible that they will appear at the T20 Qualifier tournament in Scotland, starting next month.

“A chance for a ticket to different life, for millions of women out there in Zimbabwe,” national captain Mary-Anne Musonda tweeted. “For generations of girls and women to come. Vanished in 3 weeks. Okay. Life. I’m sorry Lady Chevrons. I led. I tried.”

Meanwhile, the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) has urged the ICC to consider the effect that Zimbabwe’s suspension will have on the players in that country.

“The Zimbabwean players have endured years of hardship under the previous board of ZC,” FICA executive chairman Tony Irish said. “This has included many instances of non-payment and frequent breaches of their playing contracts. We have asked ICC to consider some mechanism to enable player contracts to be honoured despite the unfortunate suspension of the new board of ZC.

“Some of the domestic players in Zimbabwe live a hand-to-mouth existence, and there is an important ‘human’ element to this situation which we believe needs to be addressed.”

ZC has offered to submit a new financial audit and set aside their differences with the Sports and Recreation Commission, which in June suspended the entire ZC board and set in motion the chain of events that led to Zimbabwe’s suspension, “in an effort to find amicable solutions that will avert expulsion and the total demise of the game”.

“We would like to see our teams playing again as soon as possible and the ZC board is ready to cooperate with the SRC and other stakeholders to get Zimbabwe back to operating within the confines of the ICC statutes again,” ZC’s statement read.