BY ENOCK MUCHINJO
HARARE – Afghanistan’s Test series win over Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, on the back of their white-ball conquest over the rapidly declining Chevrons, is yet another horror show by our gutless cricketers.
How hugely saddening, and extremely disheartening, to throw away two winnable Tests in as many weeks. However it has become the reality of ZimCricket under the game’s current leadership.
Once again we are back to the drawing board, and searching for answers, answers that lie within ourselves had the right people been at the helm.
One of the answers, as exposed by Afghanistan in the Tests, is accepting that the we have a mediocre domestic first-class competition that is not producing battle-hardened and technically sound cricketers that can front up to the rigours of international cricket.
Take away the two old war-horses Craig Ervine and Sean Williams alongside the newbies Ben Curran and Brian Bennett, Zimbabwe would not have competed in this series. Ervine and Williams came through a tough domestic cricket upbringing from their younger days. Curran was in the English county set-up for a considerable time. Bennett, on top of natural talent, is a highly-motivated young man who is willing to put in the extra hours.
On the bowling front, if Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava aren’t competitive, Zimbabwe’s attack is pretty much non-existent.
All this stem from the collapse of a once vibrant development programme in the country. Digging deeper, ZC must lengthen the production line, starting serious business at Under-12 regionally and provincially so that talent identification is no guess work.
I’m particularly disappointed by the gradual poor work ethic of our players of colour in the team. It is massively disheartening for some very well-meaning folk in our midst, who care so much about empowerment, to see that those they seek to uplift become the weak link of the team, the difference between winning and losing.
Many of our player of colour rely on squad training, which is definitely inadequate if one one is to improve their game. Remember, as you play international cricket, opponents study you and pick up your weaknesses. Therefore in order to keep evolving your skill-sets, you need to keep upskilling yourself. Unfortunately, reality is that few of our cricketers have the commitment and discipline to engage sidearm specialists , or private coaches, to keep honing their skills.
ZC as an employer does not have systems in place to make sure their cricketers clock in the hours required weekly at the gym, in the nets, or private training.
That lack of skills start to show at domestic level. Just now in the Logan Cup, Mashonaland Eagles 69 all out, the biggest franchise in the country. Mountaineers, from consistently hitting 400-plus and having consistent batters smashing centuries and now consistently hitting totals of 200 all-out.
Quality control and the calibre of coaches at domestic level, as well as training programmes, require critical examination. If we are to bother competing internationally.
