Mustard gets Zimbabwe experience (From The Northern Echo)

Mustard gets Zimbabwe experience

9:00am Friday 11th November 2011 in Durham CCC By Tim Wellock

DURHAM'S four-day captain Phil Mustard is to play in Zimbabwe until mid-December, taking over in the Mountaineers team from Hampshire's Liam Dawson.

Mustard, who narrowly missed a chance to join Paul Collingwood in Australia's Big Bash Twenty20 tournament, will be based at Mutare in the Eastern Highlands. It is three hours from the capital, Harare, and he has been told he will be living in a house with monkeys in the garden.

Dawson, 21, found it was not to his liking, playing only one game before deciding the lifestyle was not for him.

The spin-bowling all-rounder scored a century and took seven wickets, a big improvement on his first game for Hampshire last season, when Durham's Ben Stokes hit him for five sixes off the first five balls of an over.

"There was no electricity a couple of times a week, no lights and it is very third world," said Dawson, who was due to spend five months in Mutare.

"The cricket club I was at were lovely people, but the trip just didn't suit me. I was in the bush and there wasn't really much to do, so it was a bit of a lonely time."

Mountaineers coach Garry Brent is excited about Mustard's arrival and is looking forward to his first appearance for the Manicaland-based franchise against Southern Rocks tomorrow in the Coca Cola Pro50 Championship.

Mustard will also play in Zimbabwe's Twenty20 tournament from November 24-December 1, when other overseas players involved will include Australian pacemen Shaun Tait and Dirk Nannes, West Indians Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo, and Essex's Dutch all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate.

Mustard's agent, James Welch, is also trying to secure him a contract to play in South Africa's T20 event and said: "It will be a tough month and a half, but Phil is looking forward to helping the Montaineers on and off the field. Zimbabwe are keen to bring in overseas players to help improve their standards."