The state of Kenyan Cricket is at its lowest and this was exposed in a recent interview by Jeff Koinage at the JKL live show where he hosted one of the greatest kenyan cricketer Maurice Odumbe, who is living a miserable life despite carrying the kenyan flag high in cricket during his playing days.
Odumbe, a well known cricket player and former captain of the Kenyan team, was banned from playing cricket for five years for allegedly flouting the ethical and professional rules of the KCA and ICC.
That would be the moment that Maurice would move from class to grass.
Odumbe represents a number of former cricket players whom despite of putting Kenya on the Cricket map while earning handsome salaries are now wallowing in poverty.
Speaking to Ghetto Radio news, John Weboya Mayieka aka ‘kibum’, a former cricket international says most of his colleagues are poor living in desperate conditions.
The 36 year old says though part of the cause to their tribulations was their lavish lifestyles with no economic plans for their future, the change of national cricket body from Kenya Cricket Association(KCA) to Cricket KenyaCK0 played a major role.Weboya who resides at Ngara Railway Estate where many prolific cricket players hailed from claims the latter body has been dealing with mismanagement and corruption issues which has led to the deteriorating status of the sport which Kenya once fared well both regionally and globally.
Weboya who had a professional stint in South Africa for six months earning 600 dollars per week in 2002 is now a voluntary cricket coach in Murang’a Primary, Riverbank primary and other schools in Ngara area.
He said,”cricket game is very big in other countries and players can make a fortune out of the sport. In South Africa I was provided with a Mercdes Benz and a house besides the good salary”.
Weboya is urging cricket Kenya to keep its house in order saying the people who managed the game in the earler days(KCA) should be reinstated.
AUTHOR: PAUL OJENGE/POLOSSA