21 January 2005	Friday	10 Zilhaj 1425

JOHANNESBURG, Jan 20: Zimbabwe's convenor of selectors has been accused of threatening top players with the withdrawal of their national team contracts if they do not join his club Universals.

The chairman of the Takashinga club, Stephen Mangongo, has written a letter to Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) chairman Peter Chingoka in which he has accused Macsood Ebrahim of unfair recruitment methods.

"It has come to our attention that Takashinga players have been instructed to move to Universals Cricket Club by the Universals member, national convenor and ZC board member Macsood Ebrahim without consent, consultation and approval of the Takashinga Cricket Club executive," Mangongo wrote.

The letter said international players Alester Maregwede and Chamunorwa Chibhabha had already moved to Universals and that Zimbabwe captain Tatenda Taibu, who plays for Takashinga, could soon join them.

"We have also been told that another six players who have not agreed to the move by Ebrahim have been threatened with withdrawal of contracts," Mangongo wrote. "The six players, including the captain (Taibu) currently in Bangladesh, have all been produced and nurtured by Takashinga."

Zimbabwe are on tour in Bangladesh, where they play the first of five one-day internationals on Thursday after losing the two-Test series 1-0. It was their first series after returning from a suspension imposed by the International Cricket Council (ICC), who ruled in June last year that the team was too weak to play Test cricket. -Reuters