Zimbabwe’s legendary all-rounder, former captain Heath Steak (49) has passed away. The Zimbabwean cricket legend, who had been battling cancer for the past few years, died while undergoing treatment in South Africa. Heath Streak was diagnosed with colon and liver cancer.
Key Update: Heath Streak Not Dead.. Alive: Olanga
The news of Heath Streak’s death was revealed by his teammate Henry Olanga on Twitter. He tweeted that world cricket is in an inconsolable state. Streak called Zimbabwe the country’s greatest all-rounder. The current captain of the Zimbabwe cricket team, Sean Williams, also expressed his condolences.
Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin also expressed his deep condolences.
Heath Streak made his debut for the Zimbabwe cricket team in 1993. He played 65 Tests and 189 ODIs in a career spanning 12 years. He took 216 wickets in Tests and 239 wickets in ODIs. The streak continues to be the highest wicket taker for Zimbabwe. It is noteworthy that the bowler who took the first 100 wickets on behalf of Zimbabwe in Tests and ODIs also has a heat streak.
Heath Streak was not only good in bowling but also in batting. He scored 1990 runs in Tests and 2943 runs in ODIs. He showed excellent performance from his debut and became the captain of the team in the year 2000. It was under his leadership that the Zimbabwean team recorded their first Test series win abroad. Defeated New Zealand 2-1 in 2001. However, because of differences between the board and the players, Streak resigned from the captaincy. He finally played a Test match against India in 2005. He bid farewell to international cricket.
Heath Streak was not only a player but also a coach. In 2009, he was selected as the bowling coach of the Zimbabwe team and worked for four years. In 2018, he also worked as a bowling coach for the Kolkata Knight Riders team in the Indian Premier League. He also taught bowling techniques to the Bangladesh men’s team.