A group of Zimbabwe national team cricketers who met after the resignation of captain Tatenda Taibu are to consider their own positions over the weekend.
They are scheduled to meet again on Monday after making up their own minds whether to stay with the Zimbabwe team or seek new careers — inside or outside the game.
Taibu will no longer be playing for Zimbabwe in any form of the game. He says that early next year he will head for England and ”probably join a club on professional terms to start with”.
He said that his reason was mainly ”the deteriorating state of the Zimbabwe cricket administration and then failure to obtain a satisfactory contract after months of negotiations”.
Taibu was also affected in his decision by two threats of violence, one by telephone and one face to face by the same person, which forced him to go into hiding on one of the occasions. He said ”I reported both incidents to the cricket authorities and to the police. But nothing has happened.”
The first meeting of several of the other national team players was held with their representative Clive Field.
He said: ”We discussed at some length the Taibu development and where it left them all personally. We decided they should go away for the weekend, consider their own feelings and talk to their families.
”We won’t be making a collective decision on Monday. That wouldn’t be relevant. Each man must make his own stay-or-go decision. There is a lot of concern about their own careers and also the team situation.
”Taibu was a quality batsman and wicketkeeper and undoubtedly inspirational as captain. His departure is a big setback for the others. He will leave a considerable void.
”In addition, many of the other national players have no other job and they are worried.”
Zimbabwe has lost many fine players in the last two years or so.
World’s top ten batsman Andy Flower and the first black player Henry Olonga had to leave the country quickly after their black armband protest about their ”death of democracy” statement during the 2003 World Cup here.
Sean Ervine, an all-rounder praised by captain Shane Warne, is highly successful with Hampshire, Grant Flower with Essex and Rap Price with Worcestershire, for example.
Craig Wishart and Stuart Carlisle, two experienced batsmen, were not offered contracts.
Taibu’s predecessor Heath Streak has quit all international cricket with Zimbabwe and is due to captain Warwickshire next season.
The Zimbabwe cricket stakeholders led by provincial chairmen and joined by nearly all the players have demanded chairman Peter Chingoka’s resignation in recent weeks, and also the suspension of managing director Osias Bvute pending in independent audit.
Those two and two women staffers have also been questioned by Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe officials, mainly about foreign currency movements.
On Thursday the president of the International Cricket Council Ehsan Mani was due to receive a full report on the Zimbabwe cricket situation sent by Charles Robertson, a provincial chairman, on behalf of stakeholders and players.
Meanwhile Chingoka has called a directors’ meeting for next Saturday, December 3, the first to be held since July. – Sapa-AFP