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Eddie Chikamhi Harare Bureau
SIKANDAR Raza believes the time has come for the national cricket team to turn the corner on the big stage and impress at the ICC Cricket World Cup. They are in Group B which includes defending champions India, Pakistan, West Indies and neighbours South Africa who are among the pre-tournament favourites.

Zimbabwe will also play Associate nations Ireland and United Arab Emirates in the same pool.

Four teams will progress to the quarter-finals from two groups, which have seven teams each, and Zimbabwe have not made their intentions a secret.

But to achieve that they would need at least three wins in the group stage.

Raza said apart from victories over the Associate nations Ireland and UAE, they are also targeting West Indies and Pakistan to progress to the Super Eight.

Zimbabwe crashed out in the first round at the last two editions of the tournament in 2007 and 2011.

They are also desperate to put up a good show to win back the confidence of the supporters back home.

“The supporters have stuck with us through the bad times and I do hope and believe that those times are about to turn. Going to the Super Eight will definitely give them a boost.

“To those who had turned their backs I would like to request them to come back and start supporting us again.  We’re really giving our best and I believe we’re not too far away from producing results,” said Raza.

The team left on Wednesday and were yesterday expected to connect from Sydney, Australia, to New Zealand where they will conduct a training camp for the next week.

They will play three warm-up games against the Northern Districts XI before engaging in two more practice matches against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

The matches should be crucial for coach Dave Whatmore and his men since they have not been involved in high-profile assignments leading to the World Cup.