Chevrons seek redemption

OVER the last few days, local cricket fans have been clearing their schedules and updating their calendars in preparation for the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers — which burst into life today, when the Chevrons meet Nepal at Harare Sports Club.

A sea of red and gold is highly expected, especially in the cheerful Castle Corner, which is reputed for producing a carnivalesque atmosphere of fun and merry-making.

The fact that the English Premier League (EPL) and most other major sports are off-season, and the domestic Premier Soccer League has been put on ice, means most of the attention is sure to be on the qualifiers.

Ten nations will slug it out for the remaining two slots for the World Cup that will be held in India from October 5 to November 19.

Former champions West Indies and favourites Sri Lanka, the Netherlands, Scotland, Oman, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United States (US), Ireland and hosts Zimbabwe are part of the sporting extravaganza.

However, amid all the pomp and fanfare set to characterise the period of the tourney, an important story and journey will come full circle for the hosts, as they seek redemption after the March 22, 2018 three-run loss to the UAE, which saw them crash out of the running for a spot at the 2019 World Cup.

Chasing 230 in 40 overs in a rain-affected match, Zimbabwe went into the last over needing 15, but only managed 11.

Their chase had been powered by Sean Williams’ 80, but his dismissal in the 37th over left the lower order with too much to do.

Craig Ervine, who is now the Chevrons’ skipper, had one last chance to win it for Zimbabwe with a maximum off Mohammed Naveed’s final ball.

However, the 36-year-old could not hold his nerve and gave the UAE their first victory over a Test nation. But that was then.

Now, Zimbabwe have a chance to redeem themselves.

“Obviously, 2018 is always going to be there and people are always asking about it, but to be honest, our focus is on what we need to do during these qualifiers,” Ervine said.

“We have got a different squad to the team we had back in 2018, and we are just trying to focus on each game as it comes.

“The 2018 event was obviously a tough pill to swallow as we came so close . . .

“If we do end up in a similar position, there will definitely be some words and advice exchanged between the senior guys and the younger players in the team.”

Ervine seems pretty confident of a good outing.

“We have had some pretty handy preparations in which we had Pakistan A here (Zimbabwe) for six games, spent a week’s camp in Kwekwe and had two warm-up games (against Oman and Scotland), so the lead-up to the tournament has been good.

“Everybody is ready to get started and we are very confident of a good outing . . .

“Every game is going to be a final for us.”

In the years since that fateful day in March, a lot of things have changed, but a lot more remain the same.

Among the changes is PJ Moor, who has swapped the red and gold of Zimbabwe for the green of Ireland.

Graeme Cremer, the skipper back then, has since rode off into the sunset, probably enjoying some downtime with his family.

Hamilton Masakadza, another vital cog in that team, has moved to administrative duties and is now Zimbabwe Cricket’s director of cricket.

Opener Solomon Mire has retired from the international game, while Brendan Taylor is currently serving a suspension and getting some help for substance abuse.

In fact, only four of the players who walked out onto the park during that unfortunate three-run defeat under Duckworth Lewis will take part in the tournament.

These are Sikandar Raza, Tendai Chatara, Blessing Muzarabani and Ervine.

Ryan Burl was part of the squad but did not play in the UAE match.

Competition

This year, West Indies are without the likes of the hard-hitting Chris Gayle, Carlos Brathwaite, Marlon Samuels, Darren Bravo, Andre Russel, Keiron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Sunil Narine.

The other familiar teams from the 2018 tournament include Scotland, Nepal, the Netherlands, Ireland and, of course, the UAE.

The biggest difference between then and now is that the Chevrons unit that goes into battle today is largely a new outfit.

Buoyed by recent stellar results by their team, local fans are more united and louder than ever.

A fairytale run in 2022 had the nation uniting behind the Chevrons.

This included a perfect run at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2022, in which the Chevrons not only qualified but won the tournament on home soil.

The team then went a step further and made it to the Super Six stage of the World Cup in Australia, claiming a famous one-run victory over Pakistan and coming close to beating Bangladesh in the process.

Sandwiched between the two results was a famous three-wicket triumph over Australia, which is best remembered for Burl’s five-wicket haul for 10 runs from just three overs.

At the heart of Zimbabwe’s resurgence has been Raza’s form.

The 37-year-old all-arounder has since become a vital cog for the Chevrons, often rescuing them from many precarious positions and providing match-winning performances.

His reward has been a debut outing in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

There is even a case to be made that Raza is the most successful Zimbabwean at the prestigious Twenty20 competition.

Ervine has recently rediscovered his form.

Zimbabwe’s warm-up games against the Pakistan proved there is still some gas left in the tank for Sean Williams.

Among the younger crop, Clive Madande has proved to be fearless, while it seems Wesley Madhevere just needs a consistent run of form to prove his worth.

A lot of questions still hang over the likes of Chatara and Innocent Kaia, but that is a story for another day.

-SundayMail-