Hamilton Masakadza stepped down from his role after Zimbabwe failed to qualify for the 2024 T20 World Cup. Former Zimbabwe star Hamilton Masakadza will leave his position as Director of Cricket this week, Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) confirmed on Thursday, 7 March.
Masakadza decided to move away from the role after Zimbabwe failed to qualify for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies.
The Chevrons finished third in the Africa Qualifier, suffering a defeat to Namibia and an upset loss against Uganda along the way. Ultimately, Namibia and Uganda emerged as the qualifying teams.
Masakadza, who took over as Director of Cricket in 2019 after retiring from all formats, said: “This decision has come about after careful consideration of the successes and failures of our cricket and my responsibilities.
“As much as there has been a lot of progress in my tenure, the fact remains that we are the only Full Member nation not participating in the next T20 World Cup after our shock loss to Uganda. This was indeed one of the lowest points of my career and I take full responsibility as Director of Cricket.”
During Masakadza’s four-year tenure as Director of Cricket, Zimbabwe qualified for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022, where they reached the Super 12 stage. Zimbabwe also hosted the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2022 and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023.
Though he resigned from the role, Masakadza remains keen to be involved in the staging of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, both of which Zimbabwe will co-host.
“This decision was a very difficult one to make and I remain fully committed to Zimbabwe Cricket and would very much be interested in serving in a different capacity as the organisation looks forward to hosting the Men’s U19 World Cup in 2026 and the Men’s 50-over World Cup in 2027,” Masakadza said.
