zimcricketnews.com

An ICC fact-finding team, led by Dr Julian Hunte (president of the WICB) has arrived in Harare to gauge the current state of Zimbabwean cricket. With this year's National League competition having apparently been cancelled and there now being a continuing player drain at the lower levels of the sport in Zim, it may not be the best timing from ZC's point of view. The ICC team will also be looking at the policies and arrangements that ZC have in place with regard to working towards a return to Test cricket. Their report is unlikely to be glowing, I would have thought - but I'll be very surprised if any report, no matter how negative, makes any difference to how ZC are running the game...

Ian Robinson, perhaps Zimbabwe's longest-serving cricket umpire with 33 years of officiating under his belt (including 28 Test matches, 90 one-day internationals and three World Cup tournaments), has announced his retirement from the ICC's International Panel. Robinson was appointed the ICC's Regional Performance Manager for the Africa region back in June, and has now decided to quit umpiring in order to concentrate on his new post:

"Following my appointment as an ICC Regional Umpires Performance Manager, it has become clear that I will not be able to continue as a member of the ICC International Panel. It is, therefore, with regret and enormous pride, that I am closing this chapter of my cricket life, so as to be fully effective in my new role."

The ICC's Umpires' and Referees' manager Vince van der Bijl paid tribute to Robinson's long years of service:

"Ian has given a huge part of his life to cricket and, in particular, to umpiring the game so his on-field influence will be missed by players, spectators and other match officials. It is great, though, that Ian will still be heavily involved in the game and I have no doubt that his knowledge and enthusiasm will help to develop and nurture the next generation of top-level umpires from Africa."

All the best to Ian in his new role.
CricInfo - Ian Robinson retires to take up ICC role

Zimbabwe Cricket has finally confirmed to the ICC that they will withdraw from next year's World Twenty20, after a delay for extra discussions and "clarifications" that would have worried some within the ICC and ECB. The confirmation means that Scotland, who finished 3rd in the World Twenty20 Qualifiers in Belfast earlier this month, will now get a place in the tournament.

One wonders what "clarifications" were needed, so let's make a little prediction: you'll have noticed the ongoing uncertainty over the Champions Trophy, due to be held in Pakistan next month, with several nations expressing concern over the security arrangements for the tournament - England, Australia and South Africa are being particularly vocal on this matter. The ICC does have the power to move the tournament, but a) they'll incur financial penalties if they do so and b) the powerful Asian block are unlikely to want the tourney moved (although Sri Lanka has already been designated as an alternative venue). Technically, if the tournament stays in Pakistan and any of the concerned sides opt not to take part, Bangladesh and Ireland are next in line to fill their spots - but I wonder if Zimbabwe have been promised a slot to ensure their T20 pull-out? The ICC Board is due to hold a teleconference on Sunday to decide the tournament's fate - it'll be interesting to see what decision is reached.
Cricket365 - Zim Officially Withdraw From T20 WC | CricInfo - ICC to hold teleconference on Sunday

The Zimbabwe Cricket board has failed to back Peter Chingoka's compromise deal that would have seen Zimbabwe withdraw from next year's World Twenty20 in exchange for a guarantee that they would still receive their income from the tourney. Speaking to the Sunday News, Chingoka revealed that "clarification" of the deal was required:

"We met as a board to consider our pullout from the ICC World Twenty20. We have been given instructions by our board to clarify certain issues with the ICC."

As a result, Chingoka will now return to Dubai for further discussions with the ICC's David Morgan, Sharad Pawar and Haroon Lorgat. If I was a betting man, I'd say that this is a stalling tactic by ZC, who'll be hoping that a successful conclusion to power-sharing talks between Zanu-PF and the MDC - which had been expected to be completed by now - will render talk of sporting boycotts moot.
Sunday News - ZC delegation to meet top ICC officials in Dubai

You'll remember that ZC's decision to withdraw from next year's World Twenty20 was dependent on the approval of the full Zimbabwe Cricket board. With Peter Chingoka having such a firm hand on the reigns, it was assumed that that approval would be a formality - but there are rumblings, reported in the Zimbabwe Independent, that internal dissent is growing over the move. Officially, ZC are still consulting: a statement posted to the ZC website after a board meeting on Friday failed to approve the move reads...

"The Board is making consultations on the issue to enable it to give a full response to the ICC within the stipulated one month period. Not all the Board members were able to attend the Friday meeting in the capital, which becomes the reason for further consultations."

Opposition to the decision seems to be on the basis that the national side should, by right, be playing in the competition - and that the team exists to play, not to sit on the sidelines. Richie Kaschula, a former Zimbabwe player, selector and administrator, said the decision set a dangerous precedent for the game:

"How can we pull out when our players have right to participate? Once again our players have suffered because of the administration. They have suffered because ICC has failed to deal with Zimbabwe Cricket and tackle the real issues. It wouldn’t have come to this. Our players will lose match fees and exposure, and for some of them it was the only World Cup they were ever going to play in. Why is it that these kids have to carry the burden all the time?"

"Will the ICC ever make cricket decisions? It is all about covering their backs. If England stood to lose the hosting rights over Zimbabwe then so be it. If there are issues with Peter Chingoka and his board why is it they’ve not been dealt with by the ICC? Now our players will not play because of political decisions."

The players themselves are apparently also unhappy. Speaking anonymously to the Independent, on current member of the national side said...

"Was this a financial decision? Zimbabwe Cricket’s core business is playing cricket. Are we compromising not to play cricket in exchange of a few dollars? Questions must be asked why we are so keen on preserving full member status when we are not playing cricket."

Given the political position in Zim at the moment, I wouldn't be surprised if ZC were coming under heavin pressure from the Government to back down on their decision and instead insist on their right to take part in the tournament - that would, after all, cause maximum difficulty to the ECB and British Government, and we all know how much Zanu-PF love to annoy the Brits. I don't think this saga is over just yet...
Zimbabwe Cricket - ZC Board considering recommendation to withdraw from the 2009 WT2O tournament
Zimbabwe Independent - Zimbabwe Cricket Slammed Over Pull-out

Compromise has been reached at the ICC board meeting in Dubai - Zimbabwe will withdraw from next year's World Twenty20, although they will still receive their appearance money for the event. Zimbabwe's participation in other ICC events and the Future Tours Programme appears to be unaffected. The ICC issued the following statement:

“The Zimbabwe delegation to ICC Annual Conference week is aware of the decision of the British government not to allow its bilateral series in England in 2009 to go ahead.

“Zimbabwe Cricket has also taken note that the British government is likely to refuse to grant visas for the Zimbabwe cricket team to take part in the ICC World Twenty20 2009. Therefore, the Zimbabwe delegation has decided to recommend to its board that the team should withdraw from that event.

“The delegation has undertaken to report back on the decision of its board to the ICC within one month.

“The delegation will report to its board that it will not suffer financially as a result of its non-participation in the ICC World Twenty20 2009.

“The Zimbabwe delegation has agreed to take this decision in the greater interest of world cricket and the ICC. This recommendation should be viewed as a one-off and will not be taken as a precedent.

“Outgoing ICC President Ray Mali has recommended that a sub-committee be set up, chaired by Dr Julian Hunte (West Indies) and including another ICC Board member Arjuna Ranatunga (Sri Lanka) and an official from the ICC (to be confirmed). The role of this sub-committee will be to advise the ICC Board on all matters relating to Zimbabwe cricket including its return to full participation in the international game. The specific terms of reference for the sub-committee will be finalised in due course.”

The decision is something of a back-down by ZC, who before the meeting had been adamant that they had a place in the tournament by right and would play. ZC Chairman Peter Chingoka, speaking to CricInfo was putting a brave face on the decision:

"We have decided to pull out in the larger interests of the game. We have been informed that the British government may not grant visas to our players, and that situation may prevail during the Twenty20 World Cup. We don't want to be gatecrashers."

In reality, there really wasn't any other option for ZC. But with Zim's playing rights in other competitions unaffected, you have to wonder how long it'll be before the issue raises its head again.

The ICC's executive board meeting has been extended into an unscheduled third day, after no agreement was reached on the Zimbabwe issue.

The ICC should be back to discussing the Zimbabwe issue around now, and overnight it's become a little clearer how the votes are stacking up:

In favour of taking action against Zim: England, Australia, New Zealand
Against action being taken: Zimbabwe, West Indies, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh

That would allow Chingoka to paint the whole matter as racially-motivated. You'll note South Africa's missing from that list - while their vote isn't relevant if the above tally is correct, there are signs that Cricket South Africa is divided on what to do on the issue, with controversial CSA President Norman Arendse taking a hardline stance, while other members of his board seem to disagree. Speaking to CricInfo, an un-named source in CSA commented:

"It's a surprise that Zimbabwe is being discussed here. It should never have been an item on the agenda. Also, where has this question over Zimbabwe's membership come from? This is ridiculous."

"We have suspended bilateral cricket with Zimbabwe, but that does not mean we have cut off all ties with Zimbabwe Cricket. Zimbabweans are still our friends and not our enemies and they understand that. By suspending ties, we mean we will take a re-look at the situation, probably after a season. But at the international level, we will honour all our commitments to Zimbabwe, as per the FTP. There is no doubt that the CSA is with Zimbabwe, but our president, on a personal level, seems to have different views."

So the general CSA view would seem to support siding with Zimbabwe here - but with Arendse holding the CSA vote, it may go to the ECB side of the argument.

It's expected there'll be an ICC press conference later in the day to announce the outcome of their deliberations. I'll have more once the details are released.
CricInfo - Consensus on Zimbabwe remains elusive

The ICC had been expected to decide Zimbabwe's fate today, but after discussions over the "official" result of the abandoned England-Pakistan Test match ran on somewhat the debate has now been shelved until tomorrow.

The latest comments from Ray Mali also confirm that the discussion will now focus on playing standards:

"It's not a political issue, it's a cricket issue. We are not the ones to debate on politics. It's not about Zimbabwe's membership in the ICC, either. Not at all. What we are concerned about is how to strengthen the game in Zimbabwe, how to encourage more cricketing interaction with them at any level."

Looks like the "sport and politics don't mix" lobby have won the day - although that may yet prove insufficient to save Zimbabwe's place in cricket's top tier.

In something of an about-face, ICC President Ray Mali has told CricInfo that discussion of Zimbabwe's future at this week's ICC board meeting will focus on playing standards and not on the political situation - something of a contradiction to his earlier comments that the issue was on the agenda because of the "worsening situation within the country". Action based on playing standards is seen as more likely to get the support of the Asian bloc, with the BCCI indicating that they would be prepared to reach and "understanding" on that basis.

Meanwhile, former South Africa and Zimbabwe Test player John Traicos has called on the ICC not to punish Zimbabwean cricket for the since of Robert Mugabe, and to restrict themselves to considering issues that are within ZC's direct responsibility. He points out that many people involved with cricket in Zimbabwe were likely to have voted against him in the recent elections, which is all that can be expected of them:

Even if you adopted a strictly political view and identified Robert Mugabe and his ruling party with Zimbabwe Cricket, it would be difficult to sustain that argument against the strong likelihood that most cricketers and cricket followers would have voted against Robert Mugabe's government in the recent elections, which in fact should have resulted in a defeat for Mugabe had it not been for the recent internal violence. To remove the Zimbabwe government or even change the patron of Zimbabwe Cricket under the current circumstances is clearly a difficult or impossible task for anyone.

There may be other good reasons to consider censuring Zimbabwe, or even applying a temporary ban, such as improper handling of finances, inadequate cricket development policies, or breaches of ICC regulations. If such reasons do exist then appropriate action can be taken to rectify that conduct.

Meanwhile, the ECB is reported to have offered Sri Lanka and Pakistan the opportunity to tour England next year, as replacements for the cancelled Zimbabwe tour, in exchange for their support in any vote to suspend Zim. The hope is that the money that such a tour could bring them would be enough to persuade them to vote against India and Pakistan.

Current speculation is that a compromise deal could be struck that would see Zimbabwe "voluntarily" suspend itself from full internationals (including the World Twenty20) but maintain its Full Member status and right to play 'A'-team matches, but ZC chairman Peter Chingoka has indicated that he's in no mood for any such compromise:

"In terms of our constitution and terms of agreement with the ICC, no-one can point to us any breach that we have committed. We are standing firm on our original position and we will be very clear on that, going into the meeting.

"No playing right will be suspended and we go into the meeting standing on that principle. We are an independent sports body and entitled to our rights. No issues outside cricket will make us review our position as an ICC full member and we are actually saying there is no basis to have the issue discussed and effectively there is no basis for compromise.

"You cannot compromise on something that should not have been up for discussion."

All in all, it's lining up to be an interesting few days...
Cricinfo - Issue is cricket, not politics - Mali | Don't punish cricket for Mugabe's sins
Cricket365 - Sub-Continent Nations Key For Zimbabwe | Zimbabwe Cricket Won`t Budge