Zimpapers Logo

Elton Chigumbura

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
THE Zimbabwe cricket team has adapted well in Bangladesh ahead of the International Cricket Council Twenty20 World Cup tournament that gets under way on Sunday and ends on April 6.
In a telephone interview from Chittagong yesterday before taking on Hong Kong, Zimbabwe Cricket manager Caesar Nayoto said the technical team is happy with the players’ response to training.

“When we came here we were not sure how the players would respond to game situations but I must say everyone is happy with how the guys have settled and expressed themselves in the two unofficial friendly matches that we have played. Remember we lost a significant amount of time to prepare because of the salary stand-off but the guys did well beating Bangladesh XI by 11 runs. We scrapped through but it was good for the players to settle.

“We also beat Chittagong Provincial side as we hit 290 runs and they only managed 170 and in that match the guys showed some improvement which we believe is positive for the team as well as our campaign,” said Nayoto.

He said players like Elton Chigumbura and Sean Williams who once played in the Bangladeshi domestic league have led their teammates to adjust well and are expected to carry the nation’s hopes throughout the tournament.

Hamilton Masakadza is expected to take a leading role in Zimbabwe’s quest to qualify to the next stage.

Skipper Brendan Taylor will be remembered for scoring a match-winning 60 in the five-wicket defeat of Australia in the 2007 Twenty20 World Cup in  Cape Town. Sadly, that was Zimbabwe’s only victory in the group stages of the tournament.

Nayoto said they are expecting to go beyond the group stages.

“The good thing is that we have seasoned players in our squad, cricketers who have played at this stage before and have even participated in the Bangladesh league and they feel more at home here. Our target is to make it past the group stage and do our best in every match that we play in. The zeal to succeed is what is driving the team and I am confident that the guys will do the nation proud,” said Nayoto.

A determined Taylor is on record saying; “We have to qualify . . . We are not taking any team lightly. The gap between associates and affiliates is reducing and it’s good to see world cricket developing. It can be anyone’s game on the day.”

As one of the bottom-placed teams in the World T20 rankings, Zimbabwe will battle it out with Ireland, Netherlands and United Arab Emirates to progress to the Super 10 stage.

Tomorrow Zimbabwe takes on Afghanistan in their final warm-up match before their first match of the tournament against Ireland on Monday.

Should Zimbabwe qualify to the next stage, they will face cricket powerhouses South Africa on March 27, New Zealand two days later and England on March 31 in Group 1. Only two teams will qualify for the semi-finals and Zimbabwe will have to spring a shocker to make it to the last four.