Zimbabwe cricketer Sikandar Raza expresses distress following suspension by ICC

New Delhi: After the International Cricket Council`s (ICC) decision to suspend Zimbabwe Cricket with immediate effect, Pakistani-born Zimbabwean cricketer Sikandar Raza said that it was not how he wanted to bid goodbye to international cricket.

Raza posted an emotional message on Twitter: "How one decision has made a team, strangers, How one decision has made so many people unemployed, How one decision affects so many families, How one decision has ended so many careers, Certainly not how I wanted to say goodbye to international cricket. @ICC"

How one decision has made a team , strangers
How one decision has made so many people unemployed
How one decision effect so many families
How one decision has ended so many careers
Certainly not how I wanted to say goodbye to international cricket. @ICC pic.twitter.com/lEW02Qakwx — Sikandar Raza (@SRazaB24) July 18, 2019

The ICC on Thursday suspended Zimbabwe Cricket with immediate effect after they failed to fulfil their obligation of ensuring that there is no government interference in its administration.

ICC`s chairman Shashank Manohar said that what happened in Zimbabwe is a `serious breach` of the ICC Constitution."We do not take the decision to suspend a member lightly, but we must keep our sport free from political interference".

"What has happened in Zimbabwe is a serious breach of the ICC Constitution and we cannot allow it to continue unchecked. The ICC wants cricket to continue in Zimbabwe in accordance with the ICC Constitution," ICC quoted Manohar as saying.

Further, the punishment for slow over-rate has been changed. According to the new decision, not only the captain but the players will also be held equally responsible and be fined at the same level as the captain.