Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE Cricket tried to engage former Minister of Sports, David Coltart, in a bid to get his views on issues afflicting the country’s second biggest, underlining the efforts that were made to find lasting solutions in the wake of the Chevrons’ failure to qualify for the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Although Coltart, now the Bulawayo City Mayor, has been vocal in his criticism of ZC, especially the association’s leadership, it has emerged that he was afforded a platform to chip in and offer his ideas.
Coltart has been alleging nepotism and racial selection of the national team, citing them among other issues he believes have led to a downward spiral of cricket in the country.
ZC have, however, been adamant that the Bulawayo Mayor’s accusations are misplaced.
Addressing a press conference last week, ZC chairperson Tavengwa Mukuhlani revealed that they had engaged Coltart to share his opinion on the state of cricket in the country as the cricket motherboard launched an inquiry into the state of sport following its failure to qualify for the 2024 T20 World Cup.
According to a letter written to Coltart by ZC managing director Givemore Makoni, the former Minister of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture, was invited to a meeting to air his views on the state of affairs of cricket in the country to an Inquiry Committee.
“I am writing to inform you that the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) Board, at its meeting held at Harare on 20 December 2023, appointed an Inquiry Committee to look into Zimbabwe’s failure to qualify for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and to review the entire Cricket Affairs structure at ZC. The Inquiry Committee is made up of myself as the Chairperson and two other Members, Messrs Godfrey Nyadongo and Blessing Ngondo.
“As part of our formal procedures, we will be conducting interviews with various stakeholders in cricket. As a crucial cricket stakeholder, we believe your views will greatly assist us in understanding the issues affecting the sport in Zimbabwe. Accordingly, you are requested to attend an interview at 1000 hours on Saturday, 06 January 2024, to be held at Mhishi Nkomo Legal Practice offices located at 86 McChlerry, Eastlea, Harare. Please note that this meeting is entirely a fact-finding exercise and it will culminate in a report to be presented to the Zimbabwe Cricket Board,” reads the letter.
Coltart has responded to the allegations that he turned down the invitation.
“It is another brazen lie that I ignored the offer made to me by ZC in 2023.
“Lloyd Mhishi will confirm that I met with him and conveyed my sentiments. The problem is that virtually everything I spoke about then has been ignored or disregarded,” said Coltart on X account.
Coltart’s U-Turn against ZC has also left many baffled. In 2017, Coltart praised the Mukuhlani led ZC for doing a superb job of turning around the fortunes of the sport in the country. Coltart, said he was skeptical of Mukuhlani when the legislator was elected in August 2015 but he had been proven wrong.
He was speaking during a dinner organised for the national cricket team at the Old Mutual Heath Streak Academy.
“We need to pay tribute this evening to the new chairman of the board of Zimbabwe Cricket, who has done a magnificent job which I have to confess when he first took over, I was sceptical of him and I am pleased, I am delighted to have been proved wrong.
“He has made, with his colleagues on the board, the right decisions and we are now seeing the fruit of that before our very own eyes,” Coltart said back then.
