20-year cricket cold war ends: Kent County confirm first Zim tour in 20 years

THE 20-year hiatus is finally coming to an end as a Zimbabwean team is set to make the historic trip to England in the next few months.

English County side, Kent County Cricket Club has confirmed that Zimbabwe A is set to tour England for a 50-over match, a thrilling announcement that has delighted cricket fans who have been waiting for it.

The English County confirmed the month for the momentous tour on their website on Tuesday. However, the exact dates are yet to be confirmed and expected to be communicated soon. This will be the first time that an English team hosts Zimbabwe in over 20 years.

“Kent Men’s Second Team will face Zimbabwe A in a 50-over match this July, with free entry to The County Ground, Beckenham,” read the statement from Kent Cricket Club.

This exciting news comes as a result of the ongoing efforts to mend the cricketing relationship between the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and their efforts are now paying dividends.

ZC Director of Cricket Hamilton Masakadza said all this is proof of the amount of work that has been put behind the scenes by the board, with the assistance of former senior national team coach, Dave Houghton. He added that the upcoming tour will be crucial for Zimbabwe’s upcoming players to get a feel of different English conditions.

“It’s big news for us, it says a lot about the work that our chairman and managing director have been putting in at ICC meetings with the ECB. Also former coach Dave Houghton, who has links in England helped facilitate the move. We have been hosting county teams for their pre-seasons in the past two-three years and it’s good that we will also be sending a team this time around.

“The tour to England will be crucial for our boys to have a feel of different conditions and a different opposition. Our ‘A’ teams have been to the sub-continent where they were learning to play spin and a tour to England will help them get a feel of other conditions different to those of the subcontinent. It will play a huge part in their development and we are looking forward to it,” said Masakadza.

England have not hosted Zimbabwe since 2003 and last played them in any bilateral series in 2004. The fact that England and Zimbabwe haven’t faced each other in a bilateral series since 2004 only adds to the excitement. In fact, the 20-year gap between their encounters stands as the longest period without a bilateral series between any two full members of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Despite the two countries not playing against each other, English County teams have been visiting Zimbabwe for matches. The latest counties to visit the country were Glamorgan and Durham Counties who came in for an all format tour. The tour was part of the teams’ pre-season and played against Zimbabwe’s Southerns and Northerns teams.

After the tour by Zimbabwe ‘A’ to the South-East of London, the senior men’s national team is scheduled to make the long awaited trip for a Test match against England next year, a move that both boards, the ECB and ZC confirmed. It is the former’s display of their commitment to galvanise Test cricket globally and maintain its relevance.

Both ECB and ZC confirmed that a historic four-day Test match will take place between May 28-31 at a venue yet to be confirmed.

More details of the tour of Zimbabwe ‘A’ to England are set to be communicated in due course by the involved parties. – @brandon_malvin