Ryan Higgins Turned Down Zimbabwe Approach

[Googly]

It's actually a trick learned from China. Have your key guys earning just a bit more and they'll do anything for you, and allow them some latitude to make some extra loot, as long as they stay in their lane. "The goat must graze where its tethered" - Samora Machel.

[andrea lanzoni]

The latest ZC ploy is to pay guys in Zig, which is now the offical currency and government is on another drive to curtail the use of USD. Quite a few cricketers were owed money from months ago, they pay some guys on time and others they dont appear to want to. So if they were owed 400 dollars for example they have now received the equivalent of half in real money. They must think they're so smart at saving money. I don't think the hierarchy gets Zig , pretty sure they get George Washingtons.

Police earn the equivalent of about $40 a month for example, or they were as of December, that was for a chief Superintendent!! He was itching for his Christmas bonus of 300 dollars in actual money. Clearly the despicable traffic constables are on a lot less, hence the issues at road blocks. Teachers and doctors occasionally go on strike and get arrested, they're probably on $150 a month. I don't know the latest equivalent. Imagine doing a 7 year medical degree to earn $5 a day
A radio license is 30 bucks for a quarter, nobody listens to radio. TV license is 100 bucks a year, nobody watches ZTV. There are literally thousands upon thousands of collection officers harassing daily. They're a plague upon humanity. They seem to want usd and not Zig
Sir Wicknell (knighted himself) seems to be the only Musk appointed Starlink agent on the planet, so let's see what that charge is. He's just been awarded a 170 million ZESA tender. He's held in awe and not disgust.

That's one of the issues- admin are of the opinion that there should be gratitude that ZC players are doing so much better than others.

Being the case, if in Zimbabwe a casting for professional local players with a target of 200$ a month salary should generate a stampede: aspiring players would come in millions. 200$ to be a cricketer? What else?

[Pat_Bee]

I see old Lanzoni has poached Joe Burns from Australia into his tape ball league to increase the Italian’s chances of qualifying for the 2026 t20 World Cup

[andrea lanzoni]

I see old Lanzoni has poached Joe Burns from Australia into his tape ball league to increase the Italian’s chances of qualifying for the 2026 t20 World Cup

I miss the link (and the fun).

Anyhow, it's almost impossible for Italy to qualify to any World Cup in the near and mid future.
Good news is local cricket is growing. The base is widening (not for local ethnic merit but for migrants from subcontinent).

On the other hand if Italy were to receive, once in a lifetime, the millions ZC receives annually from ICC, I'm willing to bet that Italy would qualify for a near future T20 WC. A T20 WC in which "your lol" would be targeted supporting Italy since Zimbabwe (once again) would have missed the berth.

As I said, maybe it's likely that it's me who is missing the fun and your lol as well....

[Pat_Bee]

Burns has committed himself to playing for Italy with a hope to qualify for the next World Cup, I believe you have some pre qualifying tournament coming up soon?

The tapeball thing is banter because you used to mention it in every post like Googly does with that high performance centre ran by BT and Houghton he’s always chirping about maybe that banter doesn’t translate well.

The mafia would pocket Italian ICC funding like our board does and yes we’ll probably be cheering for Italy at a World Cup long before we ever qualify again

[ilovearsenal04]

Burns has committed himself to playing for Italy with a hope to qualify for the next World Cup, I believe you have some pre qualifying tournament coming up soon?

The tapeball thing is banter because you used to mention it in every post like Googly does with that high performance centre ran by BT and Houghton he’s always chirping about maybe that banter doesn’t translate well.

The mafia would pocket Italian ICC funding like our board does and yes we’ll probably be cheering for Italy at a World Cup long before we ever qualify again

are we actually not due direct qualification for the 2026 World Cup(which we are actually hosting if i am also not mistaken?)

[andrea lanzoni]

Burns has committed himself to playing for Italy with a hope to qualify for the next World Cup, I believe you have some pre qualifying tournament coming up soon?

The tapeball thing is banter because you used to mention it in every post like Googly does with that high performance centre ran by BT and Houghton he’s always chirping about maybe that banter doesn’t translate well.

The mafia would pocket Italian ICC funding like our board does and yes we’ll probably be cheering for Italy at a World Cup long before we ever qualify again

Indeed I quoted "tapeball" in maybe no more than three or four circumstances.

I'm sorry it has been misunderstood as a groundless slogan, although I had tried to articulate my thought.

- Tapeball is a costless answer to tap into low income communities to widen the grassroot base.
- Such grassroot base has NO CHANCE to afford hard ball cricket due to its inherent kit costs.
- Without widening the base you are left with 500-600 cricketers overall (source: this forum).
- With such a meagre present base you just have to be in the domain of miracles, not statistics, to hope to have a few international quality players to bloom. Recent historic evidence supports my thought.
- Being in the conditions to woo with just 200 $ a month (source: this forum), you may have the chance to cast (at least) tens of thousand of natural talents. I wrote "natural talent", not yet cricketers. Cricketers are to be formed through coaching: it cannot be achieved overnight. Nonetheless if someone is not able to bowl above 70mph to start, you may coach him indefinetely and you'll never have a fast bowler. On the other hand: if a 'gross' teenager is able to trespass 70mph without technique, you have an excellent base to form them to go beyond 80mph in a reasoanble coaching time.
- Got some true fast bowlers, with a chip budget (comparing to yeraly flow from ICC) you have the chance to retain them.
- Not all of them, maybe just few might then be useful for the national squad. However it wouldn't be an overkill: in recent qualifiers Zimbabwe batsmen struggled against opposition's fast bowlers. If a new breed of local fast bowlers might enter into national Zim leagues, an enormous benefit would be achieved by Zim batsmen getting confidence with speeds above the usual par they are accustomed to face.

Above is a cheap way to improve the national situation which, after being eliminated by Uganda, touched an all time low.

In alternative we may weep and complain because Ryan Higgins is making a family living in England, Moor in Ireland, de Grandhomme in NZ, others around the world.

[Pat_Bee]

are we actually not due direct qualification for the 2026 World Cup(which we are actually hosting if i am also not mistaken?)

Ya, we’re hosting the next 50 over World Cup. Think only us and SA will qualify direct and Namibia as the other Co-host still have to qualify.

[ZIMFAN]

I like that they tried.

I know there are probably reasons for it (favouritism, rolling out the red carpet for whites etc) but I really don't see why Higgins or any of the other bigger name expats need to live in Zim. Mire didn't. I don't see given how little game time there is domestically someone like Higgins couldn't stay living in London and fly in for blocks like Logan cup games, the one day matches and T20 week. He'd only need to be in Zim about 70 days a year. Max. He can still live his life as he pleases especially with a wife and family.

Cartwright probably won't want to leave Perth to live in Harare. So don't make him.

You have to entice these guys and maybe this is a way to do it.

[TapsC2]

I like that they tried.

I know there are probably reasons for it (favouritism, rolling out the red carpet for whites etc) but I really don't see why Higgins or any of the other bigger name expats need to live in Zim. Mire didn't. I don't see given how little game time there is domestically someone like Higgins couldn't stay living in London and fly in for blocks like Logan cup games, the one day matches and T20 week. He'd only need to be in Zim about 70 days a year. Max. He can still live his life as he pleases especially with a wife and family.

Cartwright probably won't want to leave Perth to live in Harare. So don't make him.

You have to entice these guys and maybe this is a way to do it.

This is true especially if you only get a white ball deal. The Logan Cup is what takes the most time but the rest of the domestic stuff is played in a window which is shorter than 6 weeks.

My main suspicion is that it’s more about contracts and on the field concerns than family. Cricket will have to change its rules for it to survive in the long term. These eligibility rules are silly if we are being honest. The sad part is that I think the only thing that will change those rules is the IPL taking up more and more time which will lead to guys getting full time contracts there