The Special General Meeting of Zimbabwe Cricket scheduled to take place on December 1 has been postponed. It is the latest in a series of meetings delayed by the board, who have yet to hold a committee meeting following a controversial AGM almost three months ago.

The SGM was called to discuss the highly-controversial move to affiliate five new provinces - Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South. Opponents of the board have made it clear that they see this as little more than an exercise to give the ruling group, led by chairman Peter Chingoka, enough votes to head off a revolt by the established provinces.

The unease with the move has been exacerbated by the revelations that Themba Mliswa, the chairman of Mashonaland West and a man with very limited cricketing credentials, was identified as the person who threatened Tatenda Taibu and his wife. "We have said people like Mliswa are not good for the game of cricket," Taibu said. "It appears to me that he is so close to Chingoka that there is nothing that will be done to him."

The board statement said that some documentation had not been received in time and so the meeting had been rearranged for December 23.