Streak hits back at Flower

Heath Streak, the former Zimbabwe captain, has hit back at Andy Flower's accusation, made in May's edition of The Wisden Cricketer, that he ended his year-long protest against the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) too soon, and returned to international cricket before any relevant changes had been implemented. Streak and several others withdrew from the team early last year in protest at what they termed the racist selection policies that the ZCU had adopted.

"At no stage did I force the other players into not playing international cricket," Streak was quoted as saying on the cricket365.com website. "I made it clear to them the risks they were taking, and the decision taken was a collective one. I feel that Andy is not fully up to speed with what has been going on in Zimbabwe cricket recently."

Streak, who is currently playing county cricket with Warwickshire, returned to the international scene last month against South Africa, along with Andy Blignaut. Streak also mentioned that the ZCU had agreed to act on the recommendations put forward by the rebels.

"The ICC commission that investigated Zimbabwe cricket made recommendations to the ZCU about selection issues," said Streak. "The ZCU have agreed to act on the report, and the situation is now much better than it was.

"I regret that the matter took the course it did and went on as long as it did," he continued. "But we have settled our differences and now the aim is to make sure that we perform well on the international stage."

Zimbabwe were thrashed by South Africa 2-0 in Tests and 3-0 in one-day internationals last month. New Zealand are scheduled to visit them in August, although that series is currently in some doubt, with political pressure being applied by the New Zealand government.