Gary Ballance, a former England batter, is set to play for Zimbabwe after being released by Yorkshire due to his involvement in racial discrimination against former club teammate Azeem Rafiq.
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) confirmed on Friday, December 9, that Zimbabwe-born Ballance had signed a two-year contract with the board to play both international and domestic cricket for them.
Notably, Ballance played 23 Tests for England between 2014 and 2017 and amassed 1,498 runs at an average of 37.45 with the help of four centuries. He also represented England in 16 ODIs.
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Gary Ballance said in a statement: “I'm thrilled to be joining Zimbabwe Cricket and can't wait to start work with some great coaches and talented players. The opportunity to represent Zimbabwe has given me a new-found passion and excitement for the game.”
He further added, “I have kept in touch with a number of people within Zimbabwe cricket over the years and it has been great to watch their recent progress especially.”
Meanwhile, ZC’s Director of Cricket Hamilton Masakadza said: “He's a great addition to our domestic and international set-up and we are looking forward to him making a massive difference for us.”
Notably, the left-handed batter, who played for Zimbabwe at the U-19 World Cup in 2006 before moving to England, had to deal with mental health issues after he admitted to using racist language against Rafiq, which led to his ouster from the Yorkshire county side.
(With Reuters Inputs)
