The cricketing world is mourning the loss of Sarah Dambanevana, a former Zimbabwean women’s cricketer and international umpire, who passed away at the age of just 36. Zimbabwe Cricket officially announced that Sarah died in Harare on Monday.
According to Zimbabwe Cricket, Sarah had been receiving hospital treatment following a medical procedure in March this year. She had remained under medical supervision since then, but her condition deteriorated, and she passed away on Monday.
Sarah Dambanevana made her international cricket debut at the young age of 19. She represented the Zimbabwe women’s team from 2009 to 2014 and also played for the country in the 2011 Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
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After ending her playing career, Sarah turned to umpiring. In 2022, she was selected for the ICC Umpire Development Panel. At the age of 33, she took on the role of a senior international umpire, beginning her senior international umpiring career on September 2, 2023. In a short period, she earned the opportunity to serve as a match official at prestigious ICC tournaments.
Sarah officiated at the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup, held in the UAE, as well as the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup, hosted in India and Sri Lanka. She was part of the historic all-female match officials’ panels at both major tournaments.
In 2023, Sarah served as an umpire in the final between India and England at the ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in South Africa. With this achievement, she made history as the first Zimbabwean woman umpire to officiate in a World Cup final in any format.
During her umpiring career, she officiated in a total of 63 senior international matches. These included 42 Women’s T20 Internationals, 11 Women’s One-Day Internationals, and 10 Men’s T20 Internationals. She also contributed her services to domestic cricket and international youth tournaments.
Zimbabwe Cricket Chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani expressed deep sorrow over Sarah’s passing. He praised her significant contributions to Zimbabwean cricket, first as a player and later as a talented umpire.
He noted that her achievement of officiating in a World Cup final was a matter of pride not only for Zimbabwe Cricket but also for the entire nation.
He further stated that Sarah had demonstrated that women could reach the highest levels of sporting excellence. She had become an inspiration to young people, particularly women aspiring to enter fields where opportunities for them remain limited.
