Former Zimbabwe opening batsmen Mark Vermeulen has had enough … of cricket. Vermeulen, 32, who last played for Zimbabwe in 2009, has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket and decided to pursue a career in golf. Vermeulen, who played eight Tests and 43 ODIs for Zimbabwe, said he was fed up with the unprofessionalism in the game. “Everyone has been holding me back — the administrators and the umpires — so I have decided I can do something better with my life,” Vermeulen told Zimbabwe Independent. “I dreamt of playing in the national team again and representing the country in the Tests but I am quitting to pursue a career in golf.” Vermeulen will have to gain professional status in the game by winning an amateur tournament, and his first shot is the Zimbabwe Amateur Tournament on April 22.

Vermeulen has had a chequered career as an international cricketer – he was sent home during the second Test of the 2003 tour of England, had earlier refused to stop a ball at Hove because "it was too cold" and also had run-ins with the team manager. In 2008, he was cleared of arson due to mental illness after being on trial for burning down the Zimbabwe Cricket headquarters and academy in Harare in 2006. Vermeulen lost his contract with Zimbabwe domestic franchise Mountaineers in March after another instance of indiscipline. His relationship with the franchise reportedly broke down following a three-match suspension for angrily contesting two decisions in a Logan Cup match against Mashonaland Eagles at Mutare Sports Club last month.

Children from some of Harare's poorest townships will be given transport and entrance to domestic Twenty20s, free of charge © Getty Images

The sight of stands full of school children during both domestic and international cricket matches is not new to Zimbabwe, but their presence could be even more notable as children from Highfields, Chitungwiza and Mabvuku townships will not only be allowed free entrance to all games during the Stanbic Bank Twenty20 tournament, but will also be provided with transport to get there.

“Some of these children are our most loyal fans and really look up to the Masakadza’s, Taibu’s and Coventry’s of this world,” said Zimbabwe Cricket spokesperson Shingai Rhuhwaya. “It would mean a lot to them to get the chance to see their heroes play alongside Brian Lara or Lance Klusener.

“We appreciate the difficulty that some children may face in getting to and from the venue to watch a game of cricket which is why we have availed our bus and hired others to ferry them to and from Harare Sports Club.”

Pick up points for children in Highfield will be from Chipembere High School, at the Central Junction in Chitungwiza and next to Mabvuku Spar in Mabvuku.

Zimbabwe’s cricketers are the highest paid sportspersons in the country, claims a report in local newspaper The Standard. According to “a ZC insider”, Zimbabwe Cricket has put in place a graded payment structure for domestic cricketers. Top cricketers are in Grade X, and receive US$5,000 a month, those in Grade A US$3,500, Grade B Us$2,000 and Grade C US$1,500. At the bottom is the Rookie Grade, on which cricketers are paid a retainer fee of US$300.

The story names Gavin Ewing, Terry Duffin and Charles Coventry as examples of Matabeleland Tuskers players in Grade X, and also suggests that Mountaineers offloaded Tatenda Taibu and Stuart Matsikenyeri “in order to relieve the franchise’s huge wage bill”.

As a comparison, Zimbabwe’s club footballers – thought to be the second-highest paid group of sportsmen - are reported to be earning monthly salaries of between US$300 to US$800. Players also receive bonuses of between US$80 and US$200 for winning matches, and footballers with top clubs such as Dynamos taking home US$1,000 for winning a match at the African Champions League.

Despite their relative wealth in their home country Zimbabwean cricketers’ salaries still pale in comparison with those of the highest earning cricketers in the world. At the opposite end of the scale, a Forbes study last year stated that M.S. Dhoni was the world's richest cricketer with annual earnings of US$10m, followed by Sachin Tendulkar at US$8m.

Harbhajan Singh has made an unexpected contribution to Zimbabwe cricket after a chance meeting with Heath Streak and Alistair Campbell in the West Indies. Harbhajan was shocked at the state of the kit used by some of the Zimbabwean players at the recent World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, and after returning to India, used his contacts to organise new kit for the team.

“It was sad to hear Zimbabwe didn’t have sponsors to fund even the basic equipment for the sport,” he told the Mumbai Mirror. “But I was shocked to find the kind of cricket gear they were using in the West Indies. Some of their top-order batsmen carried the type of bats usually used in school cricket. I couldn’t believe it and asked how they were playing with such kit in a tournament as big as the World Cup.

“When I saw those school bats I realised how lucky we Indians were. I remembered my under-16 days in Jalandhar. All I had was a pair of Ace shoes in my bag. That was the world for me. It was only when I enrolled myself in the Punjab academy that I got a proper cricket gear.

“On return, I spoke with some of my friends,” he explained. “I was keen they have the right shoes, the right bats required at the highest level. Reebok volunteered to help and so did KG Sports. I also approached a friend of mine who works with ANM Sports. These three firms have been extremely supportive. I think the kits have already reached Zimbabwe by now.”

Alan Butcher, Zimbabwe's new coach, has also expressed concerns over the quality of equipment – particularly bats – used by the national side, and highlighted that as one area that needs to be addressed. Harbhajan's contribution will go some way towards helping the problem.

Zimbabwe Cricket has been forced into a major overhaul of its IT systems after hackers broke through their security settings enabling them to steal passwords and send out emails.

It isn't the first time ZC has had such problems. Last year their website was hacked and users visiting it were redirected to other sites.

"Since the security breach was first detected in December 2009, several ZC employees have fallen victim to malicious hackers who have broken into private and company email accounts for the purpose of either generating emails in the name of the organization or circulating classified information," said ZC's head of media and communications, Shingai Rhuhwaya.

"The security breach is serious. We communicate regularly with our foreign-based counterparts on a variety of sensitive issues including local and international player travelling logistics, banking details and future tours programmes."

So if anyone receives an email from Ozias Bvute in the next few days it's probably wise not to open it.