|
|
|
| April 25, 2006 | Tuesday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 26, 1427 |
Zimbabwe happy facing troubled West Indies
ST JOHN'S (Antigua), April 24: Zimbabwe are adamant they can shrug off their political problems in time to face a crisis-hit West Indies team when the two sides clash in a seven match One-day International series.
The visitors arrived late on Saturday and open their three-week trip with back-to-back limited-overs practice matches against Antigua & Barbuda on Monday and Tuesday at the Jolly Beach Resort Ground.
The first and second One-day Internationals in the seven-match series will be contested on Saturday and Sunday at the Antigua Recreation Ground.
“We are tired, but we are looking forward to the tour,” said manager Andy Pycroft, the former Zimbabwe batsman.
“We have a very young and inexperienced team which is not used to playing One-day International cricket, but we will look to gain valuable experience on this trip.”
Terry Duffin leads the side which drew a series with Kenya six weeks ago, following a settlement of the dispute between Zimbabwe Cricket and the players' union.
“This is the strongest side available, and though we have our own problems, we will focus on playing good cricket. We are not going to get involved in the politics,” said Pycroft.
“The team includes a couple of decent spinners in Utseya Prosper, an off-break bowler, and our leggie Ryan Higgins is an exciting prospect.
“Our fast bowling attack relies on swing rather than pace, and our batting is inexperienced but talented.
“We know what the West Indies are capable of,” said Pycroft. ''The object is to develop what we think will be a good unit in the future.
After the departure of many of Zimbabwe's leading players – including the previous two captains – over long-running disputes with cricket officials and government policies, the team was “the strongest side available.”
Pycroft, a former Test batsman, said the fast bowling attack “relies on swing rather than pace,” led by Edward Rainsford and Anthony Ireland, both 21.
On the batting, Pycroft said the most notable name was 20-year-old wicketkeeper Brendan Taylor, who has 10 Tests under his belt.
Charles Coventry and Vusi Sibanda are the most experienced batsmen.
Sibanda has played 27 ODIs and Coventry nine, with one half-century.
Piet Rinke and Keegan Meth were a couple of the positives to arise from the series against Kenya.
“They are exciting to watch but they tend to play too many shots,” Pycroft added.
The Zimbabweans arrived in the Caribbean with the West Indies Cricket Board and the West Indies Players' Association again embroiled in the long-running dispute over players' contracts.
The WICB is also expected to offer match/tour contracts, separate from the retainer contracts, to the players on Monday in an effort to assemble a squad in time for the first one-dayer against the Zimbabweans.
Squad: Terence Duffin (captain), Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Elton Chigumbura, Charles Coventry, Keith Dabengwa, Ryan Higgins, Anthony Ireland, Ngonidzashe Mahwire, Keegan Meth, Tawanda Mupariwa, Edward Rainsford, Piet Rinke, Vusumuzi Sibanda, Gregory Strydom, Brendan Taylor, Prosper Utseya.
Itinerary:
April 24: v Antigua & Barbuda (St John's).
April 25: v Antigua & Barbuda (St John's).
April 29: First One-day International (St John's).
April 30: Second One-day International (St John's).
May 6: Third One-day International (Georgetown).
May 7: Fourth One-day International (Georgetown).
May 9: Fifth One-day International (Gros Islet, D/N).
May 13: Sixth One-day International (Port-of-Spain).
May 14: Seventh One-day International (Port-of-Spain).—Agencies
|
|
|
|
