Former England cricketer Gary Ballance agrees to sign up two-year contract with Zimbabwe Cricket

Gary Ballance has agreed to a two-year contract with Zimbabwe, the country where he was born. According to the contract, Ballance will be able to play domestic cricket and international cricket in Zimbabwe for a two-year period. The 33-year-old was recently released from his contract with Yorkshire amid the racism scandal. 

Notably, Ballance represented the Zimbabwe team in 2006 U-19 World Cup as a schoolboy. He went on to play 23 Tests and 16 ODIs from the period of 2013 to 2017 in international cricket for England and scored four Test centuries. The left-hand batter was welcomed back to his birth nation with a lot of support and eagerness by the Zimbabwe Cricket’s Director of Cricket Hamilton Masakadza. 

“We are elated to have Gary, an immensely talented and experienced cricketer, back home where it all started for him. He is a great addition to our domestic and international set-up and we are looking forward to him making a massive difference for us,” Masakadza was quoted as saying by Zimbabwe Cricket’s official website. 

The opportunity to represent Zimbabwe has given me a new-found passion: Gary Ballance 

Meanwhile, Ballance mentioned his eagerness to work with Zimbabwe cricket and was quite passionate about continuing his cricket with the African country which has a lot of promise. He recalled about staying in touch with a number of Zimbabwe cricketers and mentioned their improved results in recent times.  

“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. 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,” Ballance told after agreeing for the contract. 

Zimbabwe Cricket recently announced the launch of their own private franchise T10 league which is set to be played in the month of March next year.