Bvute and Ebrahim remain on the board

Ozias Bvute and Max Ebrahim, who were thought by many to be the key figures in instigating and fuelling the current crisis in which 15 rebel players refused to play for Zimbabwe, have, as expected, remained on the board after the Zimbabwe Cricket Union's Annual General Meeting, which took place on Friday.

The reappointment of Bvute and Ebrahim, two hardliners known for their wish to adopt a zero tolerance approach to the rebels, would appear to make any conconciliation between the 15 cricketers and the board increasingly unlikely.

Bvute has been appointed as the ZCU's head of marketing, while Ebrahim takes over as convenor of selectors, replacing Stephen Mangongo. The other members of the panel are Richie Kaschula and Ethan Dube, while Mangongo will be performing a peripheral role as he is leaving Zimbabwe in the next two months to take up a 10-month internship in India. While he is there, the panel will be assisted by provincial coaches, as well as the national captain and coach, in identifying talent in the five provinces. Mangongo's departure is not unexpected. He had a public falling out with Bvute in front of journalists in May, which ended with Bvute telling him in no uncertain terms that his role was to pick who he was told to pick.

As well as retaining his post as chairman of the board, Peter Chingoka will also be playing the role of managing director, with the help of another director, while the ZCU searches for someone to fill that void.

Dr. Tawengwa Mukuhlani, as the Mashonaland Cricket Association's chairman, was automatically elected to the board as well, and will be in charge of the "Constitutional and Transformation" department. Clive Barnes, who was suspended from his post as headmaster of Prince Edward High School by the government for raising school fees without permission, despite the sky-high rate of inflation and huge costs involved in running the school, will be in charge of development for the next two years.

Geoff Marsh, whose tenure as the national coach officially runs out in September, has been replaced by Phil Simmons, the former West Indian Test allrounder. Marsh has been named as Zimbabwe A coach, although this is presumably only until his contract runs out.

In a speech he gave at the ZCU's annual prize-giving ceremony last night, Chingoka declared that the 2003-04 season "was a challenging one", but the ZCU "met these challenges head-on, always making sure that we kept the interests of the game above all other considerations".

Chingoka said that the ZCU continued to be guided by its policy of the "inviolable separation of sport and politics", and emphasised that it "remains committed to the development of cricket around the country."

Chingoka commended the success of the ZCU's development programmes, and added that the implementation of those programmes was vital in Zimbabwe's continued status as a full member of the ICC. "It was that consideration of our membership of the international cricket family that saw us take a hard and critical look at ourselves," he said, "when 15 players, not all of them first-team regulars, unilaterally withdrew their labour over issues that are board prerogatives."

Remarkably, Chingoka then claimed that the withdrawal of the Tests from Sri Lanka and Australia's tours was because of "a gruelling international tours programme that included back-to-back tours," saying nothing of the ICC's meeting where it was agreed that Zimbabwe's Tests would be deferred to preserve the integrity of Test cricket.

Chingoka also said that the door remained open for the unconditional return of any on of the "dissenting players", and thanked Vince Hogg, whose role as managing director of the ZCU came to an end today, for his work for cricket in Zimbabwe. Chingoka closed his speech by stating that 2003-04, the year when Zimbabwe cricket lost 15 of its best players and was suspended from Test cricket, was an "exciting and challenging" year in Zimbabwe cricket, and that "the future for Zimbabwe cricket has never been brighter."

Given the shambolic nature of the last few months, Chingoka got an easy ride from the floor, only Ray Gripper and a few others grilling him on a number of issues. Gripper asked about the trip to Australia by the entire board and their wives in October last year. Chingoka said the trips were necessary for purposes of networking.