HARARE. Nov 10 (Reuters/AP): Alistair Campbell resigned as captain of the Zimbabwe cricket team on Tuesday, two days before the start of the second Test against South Africa.

Campbell said he would be replaced by Andy Flower, from whom he took over the reins after the 1996 World Cup. Flower will skipper Zimbabwe until December 19. when their home series of three Tests and five one-day internationals against Sri Lanka ends.

Flower had agreed to act as captain, said Peter Chingoka. president of the Timbabew Cricket Urban.

"I haven't had a great time of it of late," Campbell said. "We haven't been playing well as a team and I haven't been playing well as an individual.

"I'm not contributing as I should do as a batsman, and 1 want to get back to scoring lots of runs."

Zimbabwe had their first away series win. over Pakistan last season, during Campbell's spell as captain. They also came within a whisker of the 1999 World Cup semifinals in England.

But a 10-wicket drubbing by Australia in a one-off Test, a 3-0 whitewash in the one-day international series against Steve Waugh's team, and an innings defeat by South Africa in the first Test of this series have tarnished memories of Campbell's success. His once formidable batting averages have slumped to 27 each innings.

Campbell defended the timing of his decision. "A lot of people might say I'm one victory or one big knock away from being okay, but I don t think so in this case. There are too many underlying issues that just can't be resolved in the space of one good innings or one