Sarah Dambanevana, first Zimbabwean woman to officiate Women's T20 World Cup final, dies at 36

Former Zimbabwe cricketer and umpire Sarah Dambanevana died in Harare on October 13, 2026; she was 36 and had become the first Zimbabwean woman to officiate a Women's T20 World Cup final in 2023.

She died after months in hospital following a medical procedure.

Dambanevana represented Zimbabwe from 2009 to 2014 before becoming an international umpire and later worked at the 2024 and 2025 women's World Cups.