Mashonaland and Matabeleland refuse to bow down

'We have lost Taibu at only 22, when he was just starting his international career. We have pushed too many players' © AFP

Two of Zimbabwe's oldest cricket playing regions, the Mashonaland and Matabeleland Country Districts Cricket Association have vowed to keep on playing despite threats by the government that the associations will be disbanded.

However, just over a month after the government took over the administration of Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) through an interim board, the Country Districts have not yet received formal notification regarding their status.

"I don't know what they are going to do. We cannot do anything about it," said Andy Kemp, chairman of the Matabeleland Country Districts Association. "But we will continue playing cricket. We have always played cricket in Matabeleland Districts. We have produced world-class players like Heath Streak and Adam Huckle. What more can you ask from any association? ZC has not done any development here for twenty years. We have done everything alone. What makes them think that they can do anything now?"

Kemp added that the game had suffered a major setback in both the rural and urban regions of Matabeleland since the ZC board started clashing with players.

'Everyone is disillusioned," he said. "Even the school kids here are disappointed. There are a lot of guys who were looking for a career in cricket, now they can't."

Kemp said Zimbabwe's withdrawal from Test cricket was inevitable as the union would not have managed to raise a side for future assignments under the present leadership. "If they don't have a side how can they play? If the board had acted in faith two years that dispute would not have been repeated. The board let down its key assets, the players.

"You can't replace a cricketer overnight. It takes time and hard work to nurture an international player. We have lost Taibu at only 22, when he was just starting his international career. We have pushed too many players."