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Liam Brickhill
Zimbabwe’s extended international hiatus will come to an end when they host United Arab Emirates in April, after which they will visit Netherlands and Ireland in June and July.
Zimbabwe Cricket has struggled to fill the gaps in its calendar since failing to qualify for the World Cup, with a rare trip to India – originally scheduled for March in the Future Tours Programme – falling through and Afghanistan pulling out of a tour scheduled for late April because the games would not be televised. The national side has had no engagements since November last year, when they visited Bangladesh, with players spending the season taking part in Zimbabwean domestic cricket or seeking opportunities in franchise T20 cricket overseas.
The gap between international assignments will have stretched to five months before Zimbabwe host UAE for five ODIs, with the matches scheduled for April 10, 12, 14 and 16, all at Harare Sports Club. Before the ODI series gets underway, UAE will first face Zimbabwe A in a 50-over warm-up match at Old Hararians Sports Club on April 8, two days after their arrival in the country.
Next up for Zimbabwe on the international arena will be an away tour to the Netherlands for two ODIs pencilled in for June 19 and 21, and two Twenty20 international matches set for June 23 and 25.
From there, Zimbabwe will proceed to Ireland where they will play three ODI matches and three T20Is. The ODIs against Ireland are scheduled for July 1, 4 and 7, while the T20I matches are slated for July 10, 12 and 14.
While the exact dates are yet to be confirmed, the current ICC FTP suggests that Zimbabwe could host Afghanistan for a Test, five ODIs and three T20Is in August, and then West Indies for five ODIs and one Test in October.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo