At the joint-hosted 2003 World Cup in South Africa and Kenya, Olonga and team-mate Andy Flower spoke out against “the death of democracy” in their country.

Since then, they have lived in exile, while Mugabe remained in power until 2017.

He would go on to coach England to successive Ashes victories.

With his appearance on TV talent show The Voice in 2019, Olonga was coached by Destiny’s Child star Kelly Rowland, bringing him back to his first love – singing.

A journey that began with an escape from Zimbabwe under a blanket, however, has taken its toll.

Olonga told Sport Africa that he was forgotten in the world of cricket.

The closer we get to death, the more we celebrate people. When they pass, it’s ‘he was such a brave man’.

“Until Mugabe died, I felt like the most hated man in Zimbabwe for the first 20 years.”

In 2003, Olonga retired from international cricket along with Flower, who was 34 at the time.

“I had been called all kinds of names, and that was what I faced for the first decade after I protested,” Olonga said.

I was told I wasn’t smart enough to wake up on my own: ‘Oh, Andy Flower bullied me into it’.

During the protest, people were very unkind. They did not understand the depth of thought I put into it.