dyton mupawaenda
Lawrence Moyo
IT has been a chaotic year for national cricket team bowling all-rounder, Brandon Mavuta who was suspended yesterday from all cricket activities, pending a hearing, for allegedly breaching anti-doping rules.
Mavuta, together with Wessly Madhevere, tested positive for a banned recreational drug in an out-of-competition case recorded during a recent in-house doping test.
They have been charged under the ZC Code of Conduct for Players and Team Officials and will appear for a disciplinary hearing soon.
The 26-year-old leg spinner has played 26 matches for Zimbabwe, including four Tests, 10 T20 internationals and 12 ODIs between July 2018 and December 17 this year, taking 26 wickets in Tests (12), ODIs (10) and T20Is (4) while scoring 231 runs.
Yesterday’s ban follows another sanction on the domestic scene when he was banned for the remainder of the 2023 NPL tournament after causing the abandonment of a match between Kadoma and Amakhosi.
He was also fined US$400 for three offences, including threatening match officials (a Level 1 offence under article 2.3), bringing the game in disrepute (a Level 2 offense under article 2.17) and use of audible obscenities towards match officials, which is a Level 2 offense under level 2.22.
The match had to be abandoned after Mavuta refused to leave the crease after being timed out and Amakhosi were awarded the match.
Mavuta was not ready when a wicket fell and took long, beyond the allowed window, to take to the crease.
He was dismissed “timed out” but refused to leave and attempts to engage him were futile as he hurled insults at match officials.
Mavuta argued that he could not be dismissed “timed out” when he had driven all the way from Harare to Kadoma for the match and declared that the match was not going to proceed if they did not overturn his dismissal.
In the end the match was abandoned.
Online Reporter