NEW DELHI: Former Zimbabwe captain Sean Williams will no longer feature for his national side after revealing that a struggle with drug addiction caused him to miss recent matches, Zimbabwe Cricket confirmed on Tuesday.
An internal inquiry was launched after Williams unexpectedly withdrew from the squad ahead of the T20 World Cup qualifiers in September. During the investigation, he admitted to battling addiction and has since entered a rehabilitation programme.
Zimbabwe Cricket stated that his absence was likely linked to possible drug tests during the qualifying event, which Zimbabwe went on to win, securing their spot in next year’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
While the board acknowledged Williams’ decision to seek help, it cited his “history of disciplinary issues and repeated unavailability” and announced that his contract will not be renewed when it expires at the end of the year.
Williams, 39, represented Zimbabwe across formats for two decades, playing 24 Tests, 164 ODIs and 85 T20Is since making his debut in 2005. His career-best Test score of 154 came against Afghanistan last December.
The development echoes the case of former captain Brendan Taylor, who admitted in 2022 that his cocaine use led to blackmail by match-fixers. Taylor, also 39, served a three-and-a-half-year ban before making his return earlier this year.
(With PTI Inputs)
