Heath Streak was Zimbabwe's most successful bowler of all time. (Reuters) Reports about death of former Zimbabwe cricketer Heath Streak turned out to be a hoax after his former teammate Henry Olonga confirmed that the 49-year-old is very much alive.
Revealing that they had a talk, Olonga wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “I can confirm that rumours of the demise of Heath Streak have been greatly exaggerated. I just heard from him. The third umpire has called him back. He is very much alive folks.”
I can confirm that rumours of the demise of Heath Streak have been greatly exaggerated. I just heard from him. The third umpire has called him back. He is very much alive folks. pic.twitter.com/LQs6bcjWSB
— Henry Olonga (@henryolonga) August 23, 2023
Incidentally, it was Olonga who had broken the news of Streak’s demise on social media.
“Sad news coming through that Heath Streak has crossed to the other side. RIP legend. The greatest all rounder we produced. It was a pleasure playing with you. See you on the other side when my bowling spell comes to an end,” he had written.
Sad news coming through that Heath Streak has crossed to the other side. RIP @ZimCricketv legend. The greatest all rounder we produced. It was a pleasure playing with you. See you on the other side when my bowling spell comes to an end…😔
— Henry Olonga (@henryolonga) August 22, 2023
Streak is undergoing treatment under one of the most respected oncologists in South Africa, his family had revealed in May.
Streak retired from professional cricket in 2005 after registering 1990 runs at an average of 22.35 while also claiming 216 wickets at an average of 28.14 in Test cricket.
In white-ball cricket, Heath amassed 2,943 runs and has 239 wickets to his credit.
However, Streak was expelled from the sport in 2021 after it was discovered that he had violated the anti-corruption guidelines of the International Cricket Council.
He also served in coaching roles for several teams at domestic and international level, including Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Streak was the captain of Zimbabwe between 2000 and 2004, and played 65 Tests and 189 one-day internationals.
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