Streak calls for a more relaxed approach to playing against Zimbabwe

Heath Streak has called on countries such as England and Australia to change their stance on playing cricket against Zimbabwe and said they have "a wonderful opportunity for them to build relationships with African people".

Speaking to the local Independent newspaper, he said the new unity government might just be the start of Zimbabwe's return to taking a more prominent role in international cricket. "Maybe … people will look at us in different light. Security is not an issue here compared to Sri Lanka. You can't put us in the same bracket with such countries.

"I understand that in the past these boycotts to Zimbabwe were based on moral and political issues. But I would like to see these countries changing their stance by helping cricket in Zimbabwe. It's good for the morale of the people of Zimbabwe and for cricket."

He also refused to draw a line under his international career, but admitted that he is likely to be too old by the time his contract with the rebel Indian Cricket League finishes next year.

Streak, who turned 35 earlier this week, no longer plays county cricket in England or Zimbabwe's first-class or one-day domestic tournament. Aside from the ICL, he spends his time on the family farm near Bulawayo.

"You can never rule anything out totally but it's not anything I'm considering at the moment," Streak said in response to questions whether he would consider playing for his country again. Even if it wasn't to happen "that won't be the end of my interest in cricket.

"At the moment my priority is my contractual obligation in the ICL, but if something of that sort comes up, I will look at it and see where things go from there. I would want to give back to Zimbabwe cricket what it gave me. My country has always come first in everything I do. There is a lot I can do and I'm hopeful for the future of the game here."

Streak was upbeat about some of the players coming through but fears the lack of structure will be a major obstacle to their development. "There's definitely a lot of talent but probably they lack a bit of experience in terms of having the playing experience you will find in the other teams.

"We probably need to streamline domestic first-class cricket so as to have fewer teams but high-level cricket. We need to raise the quality of domestic cricket."

"You need high quality coaching at the top. You need to have your back-up staff: sports psychologists, fitness trainers and specialist coaches. You need to have access to these professionals. We don't have as much compared to, say, England or Australia, but we need to take advantage of what we can provide."

While the bowling in the current side has potential, the batting worried him more. "In my view some of the senior players like Tatenda Taibu, Hamilton Masakadza, Vusi Sibanda and Stuart Matsikenyeri need to convert their scores into bigger innings much more regularly than they do. If Zim is to do well these guys need to be more reliable."