Former Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak passes away at 49: Details
In a devastating piece of news, former Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak passed away in the early hours of September 3. He was 49. His wife, Nadine, took to Facebook to announce the news of his passing. Streak was battling cancer since the last few months. A few days ago, the rumors of his death also did the rounds. Here are further details.
Here's what Nadine wrote
"In the early hours of this morning, Sunday, September 3rd, 2023, the greatest love of my life and the father of my beautiful children, was carried to be with the angels from his home," Nadine wrote on Facebook. "He was covered in love and peace and did not walk off the park alone. Our souls are joined for eternity, Streaky," she added.
Rumors of Streak's demise
As mentioned, Streak was rumored to have passed away last week. He confirmed to Mid-Day that the news was false. "It is a total rumor and a lie. I'm alive and well. I am very upset to learn that something as big as someone passing can be spread unverified, especially in our day and age of social media," Streak told his writer.
One of the greatest all-rounders
Streak had an illustrious career and bowed out as one of the greatest all-rounders. He remains the only Zimbabwean bowler with more than 200 Test wickets (216) and over 200 ODI wickets (239). Streak also amassed 2,943 ODI and 1,990 Test runs with the bat. Later, he enjoyed his stints as coach of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, as well as several T20 teams.
Streak's love affair with Harare Sports Club
Streak fancied playing at the Harare Sports Club. In 49 internationals at this venue, Streak took 126 wickets at an incredible average of 23.83. No other Zimbabwean bowler has more than 67 wickets in this regard.
ICC banned Streak for eight years in 2021
In 2021, Streak's legendary status took a toll after he was banned for eight years by the ICC for breaching the anti-corruption code. Streak admitted to disclosing inside information about international matches. However, he stated that he was not involved in any attempts to fix matches. In a statement, Streak revealed his engagement with "an individual keen to invest in cricket in Africa".
Streak was charged with five breaches
Streak received the ban after being charged with five breaches of the ICC's anti-corruption code, including accepting payment in bitcoins. He had been under investigation for an extensive list of games through 2017 and 2018 (international cricket and stints in the IPL, BPL and APL).
Streak retired at 31
Streak led Zimbabwe across formats in the early 2000s. However, he stepped down from the role in 2004 following a clash with the Zimbabwe cricket board. He even threatened to quit the game if his demands, which included the review of the selection panel, were not met. A year later, Streak retired from international cricket at the age of 31
