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Brandon Moyo, [email protected]

AFTER playing the one-off Test match at Queens Sports Club without the services of their three most experienced players, the Chevrons’ One Day International (ODI) squad has been bolstered by the return of Craig Ervine and Sikandar Raza ahead of the series opener at Harare Sports Club on Friday.

The Chevrons are scheduled to host Ireland in a three-match ODI series at the same venue, followed by as many T20Is.
Ervine left Bulawayo for Harare on the morning of day one of the Test match to attend to personal matters, as his wife was said to have gone into labour. He was replaced by Wessly Madhevere, while Raza missed the Test as he had already committed to franchise cricket before the tour schedule was confirmed.

Williams had not fully recovered from his injury. In a major boost to the team ahead of the one-day series, Ervine and Raza have rejoined the rest of the squad in Harare and have already begun their preparations in the nets ahead of Friday’s opener.
They started practice on Tuesday.

Raza returns to the national team fresh from helping his Dubai Capitals side secure their maiden International League T20 (ILT20) title. Raza delivered a strong batting performance late in the innings to help Dubai Capitals claim their first ILT20 title on Sunday in the United Arab Emirates.

Craig Ervine

The 38-year-old was the star of the show as Dubai Capitals completed an improbable chase of 38 off 19 balls.
With vast experience in the T20 circuit and coming in as a finisher when his team needed double the number of balls left in a crucial final, Raza struck five fours and a six to seal victory with four balls remaining.

The right-handed batter remained composed, finding gaps at will to cut the deficit. In the final over, he smashed one to point off Khuzaima Tanveer to complete the chase and secure the title for his team.

Raza hit a rapid 34 from 12 balls, with five boundaries and a six, finishing with an astonishing strike rate of 283,33. He also took a wicket and grabbed a catch.

Earlier, Dubai Capitals had won the toss and elected to bowl first, restricting their opponents, Desert Vipers, to 189/5 in 20 overs.
During the chase, Raza came in with his team needing 38 runs to win from 19 balls. Of those, he scored 34 off 12 balls, including hitting the winning run to help his team clinch their maiden ILT20 title.
With the experience of Raza and Ervine, Zimbabwe will be banking on them to help the team make amends for their Test defeat.

Zimbabwe and Ireland have met 22 times in ODIs, with the latter winning 10 matches compared to the Chevrons’ eight. One match was tied, and three yielded no results.

In 15 T20Is, Ireland have registered eight wins compared to Zimbabwe’s seven.
After Friday’s opener, the remaining two ODIs are scheduled for Sunday and Tuesday. The three T20Is are pencilled in for 22, 23 and 25 February.

ZIMBABWE ODI SQUAD:
Craig Ervine (Captain), Brian Bennett, Johnathan Campbell, Ben Curran, Trevor Gwandu, Wessly Madhevere, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Nyasha Mayavo, Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Newman Nyamhuri, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams.
IRELAND ODI SQUAD:
Paul Stirling (Captain), Mark Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gavin Hoey, Graham Hume, Matthew Humphreys, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Harry Tector, Morgan Topping, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young.