Zimbabwe Cricket's Logan Cup has gone international this year with Kenya expected to field a team next week in a competition that is more than a century old.
Logan Cup play got under way Thursday in various Zimbabwean provinces. Until this year the cup had been an exclusively domestic affair, but Zimbabwe Cricket officials say bringing in foreign teams should raise the level of play and help sharpen local talent - important given the exodus of seasoned players in recent years.
Cricket official Blessing Maulgue told reporter Marvellous Mhlanga-Nyahuye that local players are eager to test their skills against offshore contenders.
Elsewhere, an inter-province school cricket tournament also began at various venues around the country Thursday. The tournament spread throughout the country, will run until April 14 and is expected to attract over 580 players from all provinces.
Maulgue said Zimbabwe Cricket is is running junior and school tournaments to help develop new talent from an early age. He said cricket players under 11 and 17 years of age have been incorporated into the tournament for the first time. Previously, the school tournaments involved players 17 or older from senior classes.