ICC ignores crisis in Zim cricket

SPAN lang=EN-GB>All the matches in the Matabeleland Cricket Association First League set for Sunday were called off. “All clubs in Matabeleland are boycotting cricket starting this weekend pending a stakeholders meeting to be held next Thursday,” a spokesman told Cricinfo. “We are doing this to send a clear message to the ICC that Peter Chingoka does not have the mandate of anyone in Zimbabwe. So who is he representing in that meeting?”

Although Mashonaland backs Chingoka at provincial level, the six major clubs – Takashinga, Old Georgians, Alexandra Sports Club, Harare Sports Club, Old Hararians and Universals – have all split from the official provincial league in protest against the leadership of Cyprian Mandenge, a close ally of Chingoka and ZC managing director Ozias Bvute.

Senior administrators have vowed to advise the international cricketing body about the serious deterioration of the sport in Zimbabwe, which observers trace back to the appointment of Chingoka by the Sports and Recreation Commission in January. They have criticised the ICC of doing nothing about the continued purge from cricket in Zimbabwe of anyone opposing the Mugabe regime, and of ignoring allegations of serious financial irregularities in the administration of ZC.

Meanwhile a statement from the ICC this week says the Board will receive a verbal report from Chingoka, to provide an update on several key areas that the ICC has asked the Interim Board to address. These include: addressing allegations of financial mismanagement by appointing a reputable independent company to conduct a forensic audit; addressing concerns regarding the composition of the Interim Board; improving relations with players to ensure their views are taken into account and a team can be fielded of a standard that does not have a negative impact on the integrity of international cricket.

In addition, ICC management has proposed that the Board should consider whether it is appropriate to apply playing and administrative criteria to evaluate Zimbabwe‘s readiness to resume Test cricket when it approaches the end of its 12-month voluntary withdrawal from Test commitments early in 2007.– Sports reporter