Zimbabwe Cricket on Friday announced that it has signed a deal with T10 Global Sports and Lahore Qalandars in a groundbreaking initiative to discover and nurture emerging cricketing talent in the African country.
As part of the collaboration, Zimbabwe Cricket will be conducting its inaugural player development programme (PDP) in the country intending to identify promising players who have the potential to become future stars of the game.
“The Emerging Player Program is a great initiative for Zimbabwean cricket and I am excited to be partnering with T-Ten Global Sports in this. It’s a fantastic platform for some of the best young cricketers in the country and I am confident that the players will make it very difficult for the coaches when they sit to finalise the players eventually,” said Givemore Makoni, Managing Director, Zimbabwe Cricket.
The programme will provide a unique platform for aspiring cricketers in Zimbabwe to showcase their skills and compete for a chance to feature in the inaugural Zim Afro T10 league, which will see five privately-owned teams in the mix, namely, Harare Hurricanes, Durban Qalandars, Cape Town Samp Army, Bulawayo Braves and the Joburg Lions.
“We are delighted to join hands with T10 Global Sports and Zimbabwe Cricket in our quest to unearth exceptional cricketing talent. Lahore Qalandars has always been committed to nurturing young players and providing them with the opportunities they need to succeed. We believe this collaboration will pave a clear pathway for the aspiring cricketers of Zimbabwe to represent their country at the highest level as our PDP brought Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf and Zaman Khan made their way into the Pakistan Cricket Team,” said Sameen Rana, Chief Operating Officer, Lahore Qalandars.
“Our journey to unearth the talented cricketers of Pakistan started eight years ago and now is the time to launch its second phase in Zimbabwe. Lahore Qalandars is committed to continuing its hunt to provide new talent to the world of sports,” he added.
The upcoming Zim Afro T10, which will be held entirely in Harare, will kick-off on July 20 and the players’ draft is slated to take place on July 2 in Harare.
T10 Global Sports will be working closely with Zimbabwe Cricket and Lahore Qalandars to ensure the smooth execution of the trials and provide comprehensive support to the selected players throughout their journey.
“While we like to see the best international cricketers entertain the fans all over the world, I felt the young players must get their time in the sun. We want to see the best cricketers from the Zimbabwean system come out and leave a lasting impression on the senior pros and the fans, and the Emerging Player Program is designed specifically for that.”
“I am confident we will unearth the crème de la crème in terms of talent from Zimbabwe. In the future we will expand the Talent hunt program to neighbouring countries to further develop the sport and give an opportunity to more hidden talent,” concluded Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, Chairman and Founder, T10 Global Sports.