Streak cracks the nod as Zim coach

Harare - Former Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak has been appointed national cricket head coach to replace Dav Whatmore who was dismissed in June.

"Zimbabwe Cricket has named former captain Heath Streak as the new national head coach," Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) said in a statement on Tuesday.

The 42-year-old was unveiled at a press conference in Zimbabwe's second largest city Bulawayo after accepting a two-year contract.

"For me, having captained this country, to be offered the post of head coach is a great honour and I know with it comes responsibility not just to the players but to the fans and supporters of Zimbabwe cricket as well," Streak said.

"My promise is, I will leave no stone unturned in terms of our endeavour and our quest to improve the team's performances.

"I believe that we have the resources here in Zimbabwe to do just that and planning is obviously going to be a major factor."

Streak previously coached a local cricket team and had stints as bowling coach for Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

He takes over as Zimbabwe bid to qualify for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.

His immediate assignments are a two-match Test series at home to Sri Lanka, and a one-day international tri-series involving West Indies.

"I feel that with the upcoming series and the latter half of next year we have some really good cricket coming up so we can really work towards improving," he said.

"I do see a strong future. Obviously things don't just happen overnight. It's a process but I know that process can happen quickly and for me that will be a big goal to facilitate that," he said.

Streak replaces caretaker coach Makhaya Ntini with the South African returning to his role as bowling coach.