Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) has decided to suspend two Zimbabwean cricketer Brandon Mavuta and Wesley Madhevere due to their involvement in “recreational drug use.”
The suspensions will take immediate effect and will remain in place until their cases regarding breaches of anti-doping rules are heard.
Mavuta, a 26-year-old leg-spinner, has represented Zimbabwe 26 times, while Madhevere, a talented 23-year-old off-spin all-rounder, has already participated in 98 international matches.
Zimbabwe Cricket recently released a statement that said, “The concerned players, Wesley Madhevere and Brandon Mavuta, both tested positive for a banned recreational drug in an out-of-competition case recorded during a recent in-house doping test.”
The statement added, “They have been charged under the Zimbabwe Cricket Code of Conduct for players and team officials and will appear for a disciplinary hearing soon.”
Both players were included in the recent international series against Ireland. Mavuta participated in an ODI on December 17, while Madhevere played in a T20I a week earlier.
This decision adds to the challenges facing the men’s team during an already difficult period.
Following their failure to qualify for the 2023 World Cup, the African country also missed out on the qualification for the 2024 T20 World Cup, experiencing unexpected losses against Associate teams Namibia and Uganda.