Now the gloves are really off

The Zimbabwe Cricket Union has announced that all 15 rebel cricketers who are in dispute with the board have had their contracts terminated.

The board met this morning and took the decision that, as the players had not returned to work by the Friday deadline it imposed, they were in breach of their contracts. In a press release, the ZCU said that it had informed the players' lawyer of the decision.

The ZCU went on to add that, while the players' contracts had been voided, any of them who made themselves available for selection would be considered "subject to their commitment, form and fitness".

The statement concluded that the "ZCU firmly believes it has acted in accordance with best business practice whilst it has also always kept the door open for any willing and committed players to return to the fold."

The players' legal representative Chris Venturas confirmed that the players were now going to take the ZCU to court. They maintain that as they had made themselves available for selection, they were not in breach. "We are taking them (ZCU) to court over this. We were just finalising our letter to the ZCU agreeing a mediation on the dispute when they dropped this bombshell on us," Venturas said. "We decided right away we would go the distance and an advocate will be briefed as soon as possible.

"We knew about their ultimatum to return to duties by May 7 but this was a shock in view of our impending written acceptance of mediation, which we were going to deliver on Tuesday morning and which they knew was going to happen."

The ZCU's action means that a lengthy legal process is about to start, and it also effectively ends any lingering hope that this matter might be sorted without any more harm to Zimbabwe cricket. It also means that again Zimbabwe will field a woefully weak side for the second Test at Bulawayo which starts on Friday.