Banned Zimbabwean cricket legend Heath Streak critically ill

BY SPORTSCAST WRITER

HARARE – Former Zimbabwe cricket captain Heath Streak, who is currently serving an eight-year international ban for dealings with illegal bookmakers, is reportedly critically ill.

David Coltart, Zimbabwe’s former Sports Minister of Sports and a close friend of the Streak family, announced the news of the revered but disgraced ex-skipper’s ailment on Twitter:

“This is a call to prayer warriors in #Zimbabwe and beyond. Heath Streak, one of the greatest cricketers our nation has ever produced, is extremely ill and needs our prayers. Please could we all be in prayer for him and his family.”

Streak, one of Zimbabwe’s greatest players of all time, was banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) last year for breaching the body’s anti-corruption code, but said he was never involved in match-fixing.

Streak was found guilty of five breaches of the ICC's code in April 2021 with his charges including revealing inside information which could be used for betting purposes and failing to disclose a payment in bitcoin from a potential corrupter to anti-corruption officials.

After his ban in 2021, Streak retreated to his family’s farm in Turk Mine, Matabeleland, where he has been undergoing rehabilitation.