B-METRO COMMENT: May cricket be ultimate winner in Zimbabwe’s re-admission

ZIMBABWE Cricket was this week re-admitted into the International Cricket Council (ICC) and our cricketers can now get on with the business of playing cricket without worrying about the sanctions that barred them from taking part in international cricket.

A dark cloud hung over the game in the country following the suspension of Zimbabwe by the ICC over what it deemed Government interference in the affairs of the cricketing body. There was widespread relief in the cricket community this week when the suspension was lifted. This means Zimbabwe can now compete against fellow test nations and our cricketers can now earn reasonable revenue from playing competitive matches under the ambit of the ICC.

The decision also guarantees a resumption of funding for the local game by the ICC. We believe this is very important for the development of the game in Zimbabwe. However, it is around issues of funding that disputes usually emerge and the Government through the Sport and Recreation Commission supports all sporting disciplines, cricket included. It is our hope that through their lobbying and negotiations for Zimbabwe to be re-admitted into the international cricket fold, clear guidelines were set out on how the game should be run and that issues of transparency received due attention at the highest level. We do not believe that authorities intervene just for the sake of flexing their muscle. It would be regrettable if they did. We believe the overriding concern is that of safeguarding key resources, some of which are from the ICC, while some are from the Zimbabwean taxpayers.  

It is against this background that we feel a clear demarcation in the roles and the extent of influence on the game of the different parties should have been done so that we avoid similar clashes in future.  We need order in our sport, and we believe both the Government and the ICC favour orderly administration and development of the game. They may differ on how to achieve that but what is important is that their vision is the same. We applaud the lobbying and diplomacy that went into the lifting of the suspension of the country by the ICC. However, we should hasten to caution the local cricket officials against miring the game in translucence and hiding behind the buffer created by the ICC action.  The procedural rites should never overshadow the bigger picture, the development of the game that supports hundreds of players and families and has potential to grow and be a source of living for many more Zimbabweans. May cricket be the ultimate winner even now as the dust settles after the ICC storm.

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