His father introduced Charles to cricket from a young age, playing in their back garden and also at the Bulawayo Athletic Club.
He went to High School at Christian Brothers College, Bulawayo where he also played cricket,[1] and was selected for the national under-14 side, progressing through the under-16 and under-19 teams.
[1] He had taken his gear along to a match his father was going to umpire "just in case", but due to a mix-up a Matabeleland player failed to arrive on time and Coventry was told he would be playing.
He was immediately hit on the body from the bowling of Andy Blignaut, and faced three other international-quality bowlers, Eddo Brandes, Paul Strang and Everton Matambanadzo.
At this time, he also represented Zimbabwe at Under-19 level[1] and played in eight Youth One Day Internationals during the 2001–02 Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand.
[2] When Zimbabwean cricketers rebelled against the ruling body in 2005, Coventry initially joined the action, but returned along with Gavin Ewing and Barney Rogers.
[4] Later in the summer, Coventry made his Test debut against India at Bulawayo, batting in the lower order with his customary aggression, and did better than many other Zimbabweans, scoring 2, 24, 27 and 35 in two heavy defeats.
[5][6] In 2006 he played in a number of one day matches against Kenya and went on the tour of the West Indies, although after a disciplinary issue he was sent home early.