Gary Ballance will emerge from the cricketing wilderness to be part of Zimbabwe’s coaching team for their Test match against England this month, almost three years after his involvement in the Yorkshire racism scandal.
Former England batsman Ballance, 35, has kept a low profile since retiring suddenly from cricket in 2023, just three months after relaunching his career in his native Zimbabwe.
Ballance – who has played for both countries – will act as a coaching consultant for the Zimbabwe squad when they meet England at Trent Bridge on May 22.
“We are thrilled to welcome Gary Ballance to our coaching set-up for this historic tour,” Givemore Makoni, Zimbabwe’s managing director, said. “His deep understanding of English conditions, gained over years of playing at the highest level, will be a valuable asset to our team’s tactical preparation.”
Between 2014 and 2017, Ballance played 23 Tests for England, and even became the third-fastest England batsman to 1,000 Test runs (in 17 innings, after only Herbert Sutcliffe and Sir Len Hutton).
Even after he was dropped, he remained a prolific domestic run-scorer for Yorkshire, where he was also club captain and a close friend of Joe Root. In 2021, his former friend and team-mate Azeem Rafiq accused him of using racist language at the club. Ahead of a Cricket Discipline Commission hearing in 2023, Ballance admitted his guilt.
At a similar time, he returned to play in Zimbabwe, where he was born and grew up before moving to England, where he was schooled at Harrow. He played just one Test for his homeland, scoring a century against West Indies in Bulawayo. He is one of just two players to score a Test hundred for two nations. He also played five ODIs for Zimbabwe, adding to the 16 he played for England. Upon his shock retirement, Ballance said: “I have reached the stage where I no longer have the desire to dedicate myself to the rigours of professional sport.”
Zimbabwe depart for their first Test meeting with England since 2003 this Friday, and have all-rounder Sikandar Raza, who is in demand on the franchise circuit, in their touring party. After they face England, they will play a four-day match against South Africa at Arundel to help the Proteas prepare for their World Test Championship final meeting at Lord’s.
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