Chevron's name squad for Tests against Sri Lanka






By Perkins Bare

It’s set to be an interesting month for cricket lover as the Chevrons get back at it with Sri Lanka for two Tests starting this Sunday at the Harare Sports Club. The first match will be played from Jan 19-23 and the second from Jan. 27-31, and it will be a return to Test Cricket for the Chevrons after almost 2 years since their tour of Bangladesh in November 2018.

This is set to go down however without much recognition as the Chevrons are not part of the ICC Test Championship and so no points will be up for grabs in the series. The Chevron’s coach is looking forward to the upcoming series as it is his first with the team. “Sri Lanka are always a very competitive team who have been playing well and I am looking forward to the Test series,” Rajput said in a statement from Zimbabwe Cricket.

“For us, it’s a new beginning, a new chapter, and it’s good that we are starting off with the long version which always brings the best out of players. “We know our home conditions better, our players are getting match-fit and enjoying some game time. So all we have to do is to get in the middle and perform. “We have not had much game time, so the players will be very keen and eager to seize this opportunity and do well” he added.

This comes after a rather tough patch for the Chevrons who missed out on both the Test Championship and last year’s ODI World Cup meaning they have gone through a patch of idlenes which has never really allowed them to gel as a team and build that chemistry which will be essential especially going in for a Test match.

The other thing that Zimbabwe Cricket might have to look out for is that its an oddly placed Test match as its been set around the weekdays and not centered around the weekend where we have possibly Day 3 and 4 coming in from Saturday onwards setting it up for a big ending with the crowds. But with Zimbabwe cricket first test match is from Sunday to Thursday and the second literally placed from Monday to Friday. With the fans already looking forward to the game, this might have an impact on the coffers of Zimbabwe Cricket as they only have one Sunday to capitalize on a fanbase that has been starved of first class cricket over the past few years.

The good thing will be that most of the players picked up for the match are local based meaning they have been involved in the Logan Cup which is the premier domestic cup comptetion. The cup somehow started late on 10 Dec and had to be cut short for ‘unknown’ reasons from Zimbabwe Cricket.

This will have a direct impact on the players as they got some gametime before this even though it won’t be anywhere close to facing Sri Lanka. They be looking to guys like Craig Ervine who comes out usually during Test’s and also Sean Williams which will be his first match as the Test Captain. Regis Chakabva is another one to look out for as he is currently the leading run scorers in List A crocket with an average of 66.50.The other thing about Regis Chakabva is his pace between the wickets and he certainly knows how to exchange the wicket whilst racking up those runs. The one that he surely needs is someone to pair up with n=but he ceratinly is steady with the bat. The same goes for Raza who has proved to be essential for the long formats of the game despite his aggressive approach.

On the bowling side I’d certainly be looking forward to see Carl Mumba and see how he’s evolved over the years especially after his impressice entry onto the scene. 8-for against reigning champions Mountaineers in 2018 and a test economy of 3.83 he really stands as one for the future at the age of 24.

Its generally a young squad for the Chevrons and it would be interesting to see them in action. First Test is from 19-23 at the Harare Sports Club and the second from 27-31 at the same venue.

Zimbabwe Test squad
Sikandar Raza Butt, Regis Chakabva, Craig Ervine, Kyle Jarvis, Kevin Kasuza, Timycen Maruma, Prince Masvaure, Brian Mudzinganyama, Carl Mumba, Ainsley Ndlovu, Victor Nyauchi, Brendan Taylor, Donald Tiripano, Charlton Tshuma, Sean Williams (captain)

Sri Lanka squad:
Dimuth Karunaratne (captain), Oshada Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Lahiru Thirimanne, Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Dilruwan Perera, Lasith Embuldeniya, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Lakshan Sandakan, Suranga Lakmal



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Scott Vincent to Tee-Off with The Masters Champion

Image
Zimbabwe’s top ranked amateur golfer Scott Vincent is set to tee off with the recently crowned Masters champion Jordan Spieth who was crowned at Augustus this past weekend. the two are set to go head to head this upcoming weekend as they battle it out in the RBC Heritage Classic on April 16-20 at the Harbour Town Golf Links at Sea Pines Plantation in Hilton Head, South Carolina. This will be a chance for Scott Vincent to turn pro and speaking on the tourney in an interview the humble Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University senior was quick to rubbish any expectations as he dismissed anything big saying that to him this was an opportunity to learn from the best. "Don't set expectations too high and just soak every bit of what there is to soak in on the PGA Tour." Speaking on his chances in the tournament he went on to add, "I'm just here to learn," he said. "Hopefully I'll be back in a few years' time." Vincent was quick
Read more

ZC Heartbreak Can it Get Any Worse?

Image
Perkins-Tino Bare “I played too much cricket in my life to fall back now on ‘what ifs’ and ‘maybes’ so, like the players, I will accept that we were not good enough. One win in six matches is immense disappointment. The future might be bleak, with qualification almost certainly required for the next ICC Cricket World Cup, and ZC facing a battle to attract fixtures in the short and medium term, either home or away, the players will need to embrace the fact that their futures lie in their hands” , Alastair Campbell told standard sport. So as our boys left the center stage back into the dark, gloomy background of ZC to most it was more of the same, `so close yet so far` but this time it was different the guys represented us quite well during the course of the whole tournament despite leaving with just one victory and one would be tempted to agree that if Dav Whatmore is to get more time with the team he is to build he should therefore build a formidable side indeed. This t
Read more

Third-Time Luck for the Cheetahs?

Image
Perkins-Tino Bare The Zimbabwe sevens` rugby team the Cheetahs got their battle this morning to a flying satart as they beat Guyana 36-0, as they seek that much coveted HSBC core statusover this weekend in Hong Kong as they play in the Qualifiers which would determine the core member status of the winner of the round of fixtures. The Cheetahs who could have not asked for better preparations as they got the chance to train with the World`s best in the South African Side the Blitzebokke at their world-class University of Stellenbosch training facilities om South Africa go into this series with their heads held high as is left to do on the pitch as this time the administrators have outdone their part and its now left to the players to prove their worth. The Cheetahs kicked off their campaign in what would be their third attempt with an assignment bytharshing Guyan 36-0 and they will take on Tonga two hours later which would wrap up their encounters for the day. The encou
Read more