One of the most decorated players in Zimbabwe’s history Heath Streak has been going through a treatment for cancer.
Heath’s family released a statement about his ongoing treatment in South Africa. They thanked the supporters for their wishes and the support they continue to show in the tough time. “Heath has cancer and is undergoing treatment under one of the most respected oncologists in South Africa. He remains in good spirits and will continue to fight this disease in a similar vein to that which his opponents faced during his revered days on the cricket field.”
“The family hopes that you understand and respect their wish for this to remain a private family matter, and thank you for your prayers and good wishes. There will be no further official statements regarding his health at this time. Any news that becomes public should be regarded as rumour,” his family said in a statement.
The 49-year-old announced his retirement at the age of 31 in 2005. Streak still remains the only Zimbabwe bowler with more than 100 Test wickets and over 200 ODI wickets. He captained Zimbabwe in 2000, which was a difficult period when a number of players withdrew from the national side as relations between the board and the team was going through a rough patch.
In 2021, he was handed an eight-year ban by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for breaching Anti-Corruption Code. However, he later released a statement saying that he was not involved in any sort of match-fixing.
“I also want to place on record to the public and fans that I was not involved in any match-fixing, spot-fixing, or attempts to influence a game or share information from a changeroom during a match at any given time in our relationship.