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Eddie Chikamhi
Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE Cricket have drawn up a comprehensive plan on how they intend to restart their programmes at the end of the coronavirus lockdown.
The association were forced to cancel the domestic league, as well as the scheduled visit by Ireland last month.
The tour by Afghanistan, which was set for next month, is now under serious threat.
But, they are hopeful the remainder of the international fixtures will be able to take place this year.
“We have followed the Government protocol and remained under lockdown until such a time we are told it’s safe to resume cricket,’’ said ZC chief executive Givemore Makoni.
“We must ensure the safety of the players, officials and supporters. So, ZC have a proper protocol to be followed on how we intend to come back after the lockdown.
“We have procured sanitisers and disinfects, with the help of ICC, to disinfect the grounds.
“Maintenance has been going on at our grounds like the Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club.
“We had a reduced staff working under strict social distancing protocol.’’
ZC have also been involved in the fight against coronavirus through awareness campaigns aired via digital and electronic platforms.
The association have sourced material that include disinfectants, sanitisers, gloves and Vitamin C tablets to be distributed to Wilkins and Thorngrove hospitals.
Two orphanages in Harare and Bulawayo are also set to benefit from the association’s social responsibility programmes during the coronavirus lockdown.
Already, Zimbabwe have lost out on international cricket fixtures after the tour of Ireland was postponed.
There is also a big chance Afghanistan will not be able to tour next month.
The Chevrons were also scheduled to host India in a potentially money-spinning tour in August and the association is likely to miss the big opportunity to boost their coffers.
Hosting a giant like India usually comes with a guaranteed pay cheque, in terms of television rights.
Zimbabwe also had scheduled dates with Australia and Netherlands later this year.
“Our main loss is on game-time, if we are to look at our situation. When Covid-19 struck there were two counties already touring and they had to cut short their stay in Zimbabwe.
“We were meant to host Ireland last month and that was supposed to come with some revenue from television as well, although little.
“We have lost quite a bit but health and safety are the most important things. It’s a fact that we can recover the financial losses and the lost game-time but not the loss of life.
“That is why we are saying let’s abide by the lockdown protocols, maintain social distancing and wash our hands.
“But, we are still hoping that things will normalise and cricket comes back soon, it’s an opportunity that we don’t have to lose,” said Makoni.
Zimbabwe Cricket have been putting in place measures to deal with the challenges posed by the global pandemic.
At the beginning of the year, ZC embarked on salary restructuring which saw employees taking a pay-cut on a sliding scale.
That saw the secretariat, together with the highest-paid players, getting their salaries reduced by 30 percent.
Lowly-paid players, including those on provincial or central contracts, had their remuneration slashed by 15 percent.
Only the ground staff were not affected by the salary cuts since they are lowly paid.
The reduction in salaries came after ZC’s disbursement from the International Cricket Council was reduced from US$9 million to US$5 million from September 2019 to October 2020.
ZC officials feel the move, together with other cost-cutting measures, have assisted the association better handle the challenges posed by the coronavirus outbreak.
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