Mukuhlani rallies stakeholders to unite for Zim cricket’s golden era

ZIMBABWE Cricket (ZC) chairperson,Tavengwa Mukuhlani has said all the relevant stakeholders in the game need to work together to ensure that the dream of a golden future for the sport in the country becomes a reality.

Mukuhlani was speaking during ZC’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) that was held virtually on Saturday. He believes that Zimbabwe’s success in the African Games that were held in Ghana in March points to a bright future.

Zimbabwe Emerging (men) and the Lady Chevrons won gold in the African Games and for Mukuhlani that was a clear indicator of what is possible in the near future.

He added that those are rewards of investment.

“All of this – the bold performances, great results and gold medals – speak to the fact that if you invest in the game, you will reap incredible benefits. Our work is cut out though and it will require all stakeholders to put in the necessary hours and resources to ensure the golden era that is beckoning becomes a reality,” said Mukuhlani in his chairman’s report.

Mukuhlani added that their ultimate objective as ZC remains as the need to grow the game of cricket to make it a sport for all, offering opportunities to play, attend, watch and follow.

“As we look back on the challenges overcome and the victories won, we cannot help but feel a sense of immense pride and satisfaction. We weathered the storm together and now we can look forward to the exciting future ahead,” said Mukuhlani.

The AGM was attended by delegates from the country’s 10 provinces and the gathering also adopted ZC’s audited financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2023, with the organisation having once again received an unqualified or clean audit opinion.

Zimbabwe is set to co-host the 2026 ICC Men’s Under-19 Cricket World Cup alongside Namibia and the 2027 Men’s Cricket World Cup with Namibia and South Africa. A fortnight ago, Zimbabwe lost the bid to be the new host venue for the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup with ICC opting to have the United Arab Emirates (UAE) host in place of Bangladesh who were the initial hosts.

The country also hosted the 2018 and the 2023 Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers and the 2022 Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifiers.

Mukuhlani told Forbes that they hope to create a legacy by hosting more international events in order to make the sport popular.

“We have proven in recent years that we can host big events well and the passion of the fans has also shown that there is such an appetite for cricket here,

“We would have loved to host the women’s World Cup, but we were not disappointed with the decision. Zimbabwe has become an appealing option to host major cricket events and we want this to be a legacy for the sport here to make it even more popular,” he said.

ZC is also set to re-advertise for the position of bowling coach for the Zimbabwe Under-19 Men’s National Team after former South Africa international Paul Adams, who had initially been offered the post, decided to accept a job elsewhere.

— @brandon_malvin