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ZC have issued a statement regarding Cricket Scotland's decision not to tour Zimbabwe for their scheduled Intercontinental Cup match, and in doing so have ruled out playing the match on neutral territory:

Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) has confirmed receiving official notification from Cricket Scotland about the Scottish governments directive not to tour Zimbabwe for the scheduled ICC Intercontinental Cup matches against the
Zimbabwe A team.

"The decision is regrettable," said ZC managing director Ozias Bvute. "We have consulted with our various authorities who have all ruled out the possibility of these matches being played in a neutral venue," he added.

"I remain of the belief that sport can build bridges and I have confidence that it can also act as a catalyst for healing and national unity. It is with this in mind that we hope that in the not too distant future, all the strained sporting relations will be restored for the common good of all," said Bvute.

Emphasis added. That puts the ball back in the ICC's court as to how the match should be handled, and with the two boards apparently unwilling to compromise they'll be left with a difficult decision as to what sanctions should be taken for failure to honour the fixture, and against which side.

Scotland on Sunday reports that, acting on advice from the UK Foreign Office, Cricket Scotland have decided not to travel to Zimbabwe for their upcoming Intercontinental Cup fixture. Failure to honour the fixture would cost Scotland any hope of a place in the tournament final, but the paper reports that discussions are underway with the ICC about holding the fixture on neutral territory, as had originally been intended. The Scottish position on touring Zimbabwe does seem out-of-step with other nations at the moment, though, especially with Ireland - whose team is also drawn from Northern Ireland, a part of the UK - having already agreed to tour.
Scotland on Sunday - Saltires out of Zimbabwe tie on Foreign Office advice

The BBC reports that Cricket Scotland will meet tomorrow to discuss their upcoming Intercontinental Cup fixture against Zimbabwe XI. Pressure is on the Scots to travel to Zimbabwe to fulfil the fixture, instead of playing on neutral territory as originally scheduled - in fact, the BBC report claims that if the Scots refuse to travel to Zimbabwe they could be faced with forfeiting the fixture.

Zim sports minister met the Cricket Scotland last week, and stated in a Twitter post after the meeting that he was confident that the Scots would tour. We'll find out soon enough if his confidence was misplaced or not.
BBC Sport - Scotland could face Zimbabwe match dilemma

The pre-World Cup warmup fixtures have been announced for next year's tournament, and Zimbabwe will be facing South Africa and Ireland in their two matches. These aren't official ODIs, of course, but do provide some useful match practice ahead of the group stage of the competition and tend to be matches were Zimbabwe spring the odd surprise. Here are the details:

Sat Feb 12	South Africa v Zimbabwe         Chennai
Tue Feb 15	Ireland v Zimbabwe              Nagpur

The full list of Zimbabwe's World Cup group fixtures can be found on our Fixtures page.

No word yet from either board, but Associated Press are reporting that the Intercontinental Cup fixture between Zimbabwe XI and Ireland, which had ben set to take place on neutral ground in South Africa, has been moved to Zimbabwe. The report also states that Cricket Ireland have agreed to three one-day internationals to supplement to four-day match - it's not clear at the moment whether these will be against Zimbabwe XI or against the full senior side. More details when I get them.
Taiwan News - Ireland agrees to play 3 ODIs in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe XI trounced Canada by an innings and 73 runs, taking only three days to wrap up their Intercontinental Cup meeting with the North American side and in doing so claiming the largest winning margin of the tournament so far and maintaining their unbeaten record. The seeds of the victory were planted on day one when after winning the toss, Canada were put in to bat by Vusi Sibanda and promptly collapsed in a way that's normally associated with Zimbabwe - and I have to say it's nice to watch such collapses from the other side. Canada managed a poor 129 from their first innings, with Rizwan Cheema's unbeaten 46 being the pick of the bunch (and one of only three scores to reach double figures). Zimbabwe's bowlers produced a team effort, with Ed Rainsford and Tendai Chatara bagging three each and Shingi Masakadza and Timycen Maruma each bagging a pair.

Zimbabwe XI's first innings was for the most part a story of starts that didn't go on, but a stand-out knock of 177 by Craig Ervine - his second ton in two matches - helped push the side to 351 before he was finally stumped, the last wicket to fall. That Shingi Masakadza's 35 was the next-highest score underlines the continuing frailty of Zimbabwe's batting, though, and is a problem that remains to be addressed. Umar Bhatti took 6/98 for Canada, but despite his best efforts the home side were left with a mountain to climb even to make Zimbabwe bat again.

It was a mountain they failed to conquer, as Canada's second innings was barely better than the first. Hamza Tariq was the top-scorer this time around, scoring 39 before being run out, but a stellar performance from Shingi Masakadza (5/58) saw the home side bowled out for 149, well short of making Zimbabwe bat again, and that was all she wrote.

Full scorecard below the cut. Zimbabwe XI now move to second place in the tournament table, behind Scotland, who along with Ireland are our remaining opponents in the competition. Full scorecard below the cut.
Canada 129 (54.2 overs; Rizwan Cheema 46*, Chatara 3/21) & 149 (56.5 overs; Hamza Tariq 39, Masakadza 5/58), Zimbabwe XI 351 (97.1 overs; Ervine 177, Bhatti 6/98). Zimbabwe XI win by an innings and ?3 runs.

Zimbabwe XI took revenge for the drubbing they received from Netherlands in their one-day fixture with a comprehensive 137-run victory in the far more important Intercontinental Cup meeting between the two sides. It's a result that, an hour after the match started on Sunday, looked unlikely - after winning the toss and opting to bat, Zim's openers slumped to a dire 3/8 in 3 overs, leaving them with a mountain to climb, but climb it they did, with a lot of help from Craig Ervine. Coming in at number five, the younger Ervine put down roots and, initially with Stuart Matsikenyeri (44) and later with Regis Chakabva (34), built the foundations for what eventually turned out to be a decent first-innings score. Ervine was eventually out for a career-best 145, as Zimbabwe XI reached 298 before being bowled out. Berend Westdijk, responsible for the early carnage, went on to be the best of the Deutch bowlers, taking 4/46.

The Dutch batting fortunately turned out to be even flakier than the Zimbabwean. Once again it fell to three players to form the groundings of their innings, but Wesley Barresi (81), Pietar Seelar (40*) and Ruud Nijman (23) received virtually no support from their compatriots - none of them reaching double figures - as the Dutch were bowled out for 186, handing Zimbabwe XI the first-innings points and a lead of 112.

That gave Zimbabwe a chance to build an unassailable second-innings lead, a chance that for once they didn't squander. Four of the visitors passed 50 - Vusi Sibanda's 88 led the scoring and Matsikenyeri (68) was again in the runs, while Ervine (59) and Chakabva (54) took the lead past 400 before Sibanda declared with the score on 305/5, setting the Dutch a target of 418 to win the day - or batting for a day and a half to force a draw.

Neither of those outcomes ever really looked likely, although to their credit the Dutch didn't give-up without a fight. Eric Szwarczynski led the fight with a composed 81, while Seelar (81) kept the tail wagging for long enough to perhaps cause a few nerves amongst the Zimbabweans. The home side only managed to reach 280, though (with Ruud Nijman unable to bat due to a broken hand), leaving Zimbabwe XI with a clear win and the maximum 20 tournament points from the match.

Zimbabwe XI now move on to Canada for their next fixture. After this performance, you would have to consider them favourites to secure another win. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe XI 298 (89 overs; Ervine 145, Westdijk 4/46) & 305/5 decl (70.3 overs; Sibanda 88, Jonkman 2/63), Netherlands 186 (75.5 overs; Barresi 81, Mushangwe 3/47) & 280 (94 overs; Seelar 81*, Maruma 3/44). Zimbabwe XI win by 137 runs.

Zimbabwe XI left Harare yesterday for two fixtures of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Intercontinental Cup in the Netherlands and Canada.

In the Netherlands, Zimbabwe XI will play the hosts in a one-day match in Amstelveen on Friday and then a four-day match starting on Sunday. They will then leave for Canada to play the hosts in a another Intercontinental Cup match. That one is scheduled for the 2nd to the 5th of August in Toronto.

Vusimuzi Sibanda is captaining the side and Stephen Mangongo is the coach. Mangongo, who is also the assistant coach for the senior national team, will be assisted on the Zimbabwe XI tour by former Zimbabwe Test player Andrew Waller who will also double up as the team manager. Another former Zimbabwe international, Heath Streak, is the bowling coach.

"I am definitely one lucky man to be surrounded by this kind of technical staff. Bundu (Waller's nickname) is an astute coach. He has played the game at the highest level and is passionate about the team. Indeed, he is a superman and I am looking forward to working with him on this tour.

"Captain Vusi Sibanda has been around for a while. He has played for the senior team and is a player who knows his cricket. He has been the top runner in the past year in franchise cricket. He has over seven centuries and that in itself is a sign that he has what it takes. The team is well-balanced and we are spoilt for choice," said Mangongo.

Three players from the Zimbabwe squad that went to the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand earlier this year have been drafted into the squad. They are Mountaineers off-spinner Natsai Mushangwe and medium fast bowlers Nathan Waller and Tendai Chatara. Mangongo believes these are the future stars of the game for Zimbabwe.

"It is good for Zimbabwe cricket that we are identifying a young crop that we can nurture. To me, that is a key element for cricket to survive. The youngsters in our current squad are very exciting. Tendai Chatara has shown a glimpse of genuine pace, Nathan Waller has a good physique and all the attributes of a fast bowler and Mushangwe is a brilliant turner of the ball - his domestics statistics speak for themselves," said the Zimbabwe XI coach.

Chamunorwa Chibhabha will be expected to do well as an opener on the tour. He is well-known for his explosive approach in shorter versions of the game and has the run scoring abilities to gift his team a secure start to an innings. The pairing of Chibhabha with the captain or Stuart Matsikenyeri has potential to set big scores against the lower-ranked teams on this tour.

Charles Coventry, Craig Ervine and Foster Mutizwa will form part of the depth of the middle order and should enjoy some of the flat batting tracks in Amstelveen.

Zimbabwe sits in fourth with 23 points in the tournament after winning a game and drawing one due to weather interruptions.

"Zimbabwe XI players are supposed to aim for places in the national team. They can only do that through performances that give top players more pressure. In doing so we create more options and the depth that we need as we approach our return to playing Test cricket," said Heath Streak as the team had its final practice session in Harare.

Bas Zuiderent has been named Netherlands captain for the limited-overs leg of Zimbabwe's visit. He was the vice-captain during the World Cricket League. Regular skipper Peter Borren was unavailable for selection. Nick
Statham will then take up the reins for the Intercontinental Cup game on Sunday.

The team: V. Sibanda (captain), F. Mutizwa, S. Williams, C. Ervine, C. Coventry, C. Chibhabha, R. Chakabva, S. Matsikenyeri, T. Chatara, E. Rainsford, K. Dabengwa, S. Masakadza, N. Mushangwe, N. Waller, T. Maruma, Stephen Mangongo (coach), Andrew Waller (assistant coach/manager), Heath Streak (bowling coach), Travor Wambe (physiotherapist) and Walter Karimanzira (fitness trainer).
[Source: ZC]

Netherlands will face Zimbabwe XI in one ODI and an Intercontinental Cup fixture before the end of the month, and the Dutch have now named their squads for both matches:

ODI squad: Bas Zuiderent (captain), Adeel Raja, Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Tom Cooper, Steven de Bruin (wicketkeeper), Tom de Grooth, Maurits Jonkman, Bradley Kruger, Ruud Nijman, Pieter Seelaar, Nick Statham, Eric Szwarczynski

Intercontinental Cup squad: Nick Statham (captain), Adeel Raja, Wesley Barresi, Steven de Bruin (wicketkeeper), Tom de Grooth, Wilfred Diepeveen, Tom Heggelman, Maurits Jonkman, Ruud Nijman, Pieter Seelaar, Eric Szwarczynski, Berend Westdijk

Netherlands are using the fixtures as an opportunity to introduce some new young players to their side, while Zimbabwe are fielding a comparatively strong side. On paper that gives Zim the advantage, and they will need to win the match to keep up with Scotland at the top of the tournament table. Good luck to our guys.

John Howard is refusing to lie down in his bid to become ICC Vice-President and has refused to withdraw his nomination for the post, despite it having been made clear to him that there's insufficient support for his candidacy. Speaking to Sky News Australia, Howard remained defiant:

"Those who've indicated they don't support it have not given a reason. Even in private discussions, they're very reluctant to give a particular reason. It's certainly an unusual situation because I haven't been told, nor have the representatives of Cricket Australia been told, why this attitude at this stage should be as it is.

"I won't be withdrawing. I wanted to do this job, I wanted to do it well and I would have devoted my full time to it."

Zimbabwe Cricket are believed to be one of the six boards opposing Howard's nomination, and despite having wooed ZC recently Howard was unrepentant about his past criticism of the country:

"I wear the criticism as a badge of honour. I don't apologise in any way for the criticism I offered of the Mugabe regime. If [my rejection] was in some way based on past political positions, well that's a very bad precedent to be establishing for the ICC."

The ICC have asked Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket, whose turn it is to nominate for the post of Vice President, until the end of August to name an alternate candidate, but on the back of Howard's comments it seems the issue may run and run.
ESPNStar - Howard criticises Afro-Asian bloc