Irish-Zim In Hobart Rematch

 By Perkins-Tino Bare

“In relation to the story that has appeared in today’s Zimbabwe Herald, it would be easy to dismiss it as a childish diatribe if it wasn’t for the vicious personal attack on John which cannot pass without comment, and possible action. ““We understand, as does John, that public figures may occasionally be subject to negative comment, but in mocking John in such a contemptuous fashion, and using his personal difficulties as a mere punchline, the Zimbabwe Herald has demonstrated breath-taking crassness and a gross error of editorial judgement. We have made contact with ICC to understand what remedies might be available to us.”
Such was the response from the Irish Cricket Board when Robson Sharuko penned that controversial article at the back of an equally controversial loss for the Chevrons. Right now the Irish are in town for 3 ODI`s and a 4 day match and this time round they will not be looking forward to drama to see them through they are just here to show us they could have done it as well without the luck of the Irish. 
The upcoming series between Zimbabwe and Ireland is expected to be a heated one (well at least for the Irish) as they are keen on setting the record straight right in from of our faces. 
Ireland welcome back Kevin O`Brien into the squad as he had been kept on the sidelines with a hamstring injury. Kevin brings in some great quality to the Irish and we should expect him to cause a lot of problems for our bowlers if he is not handled properly. Speaking on the announcement of the squad their captain William Porterfield told the BBC that his team was ready to go and all set for the series "It's fantastic that everyone is fit and raring to go," said Porterfield. "We've been involved in some great games with Zimbabwe over the years and I'm certain this series will bring more of the same.We all remember the World Cup games, with the tie in the West Indies in 2007 and our five-run win in Hobart at the start of the year." 
So one cannot divorce what happened at the start of the year with this series as this is that second chance at glory for that kid who was crying in the corner that he didn`t get a fair crack at the whip. 
The Zimbabwean camp is low on confidence especially after dissapointing their fans in that final ODI against Pakistan where they were absolutely blown away. The technical team however has already started having a go at the team for its slackness warning sternly that under-performing players should embrace themselves for the chop. The first casualty was Hamilton Masakadza which came after an awful turnout in which he was posting below par scores. 
The batting coach Andy Waller has also been complaining that the team does not seem to be hungry enough on the field of play. Right now we`re hearing accusations being leveled against Tinashe Panyangara for waving the dollar sign after a complaint from a fan at the back of a dropped catch.
This then goes on to question the whole commitment of the team as they have gotten accustomed to losing. The body language of the players themselves at the post-match presentations just tells it all as they show absolutely no remorse. The skipper himself has been riding on a band of the same post--match interview and it goes on to show that the team is currently not improving yes they are being constantly tested but they are not learning anything from this losses which is a bit worrying. It then goes on to reveal again the warmth that lies within the camp as a result of the young players being constantly
denied a spot in the team and that rotational policy that has seen teams being chosen over a cup of coffee.
Brian Chari played well and he should therefore maintain his spot at the top of the pile so should Luke Jongwe and John Nyumbu as well. As for the other experienced players in the team who are just there for a round of cricket they really have to step up their game. The skipper himself has to consider bowling again if he intends on maintaining his slot as he has not been performing well with the bat as well and as for Graeme Cremer who scored a total of 2 runs during the whole series something should be done if they are willing to come out with something out of this series for as much as the Irish are here to prove a point we also have our pride to defend. 
The 1st ODI is going to be played this Friday at the Harare Sports Club with the second to be played on Sunday with the final ODI on the 13th of October. 
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