Captain Ervine arrival to boost Zimbabwe

Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter

CRAIG Ervine, who will lead Zimbabwe in the two-match Test series against West Indies in the absence of Sean Williams has joined the Chevrons camp ahead of the much anticipated two-match five-day contest starting on Saturday at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.

Ervine, to captain the Zimbabwean team due to the non-availability of Test skipper, who is out recovering from a finger injury, missed the team’s first training session on Tuesday.

The left-handed batsman was part of yesterday’s session at Queens Sports Club as the Dave Houghton-led Zimbabwean side intensified their preparations for the series. His arrival has given a boost to the Chevrons whose squad is lacking in experience in the longest format of the game.

Batsman Milton Shumba and fast bowler Tanaka Chivanga were also present at yesterday’s session having missed the first one like the skipper.

It was however not so good a day for the West Indies side who had their training session scheduled for the afternoon. The practice could not go ahead as planned due to persistent rain which saw the Caribbean side going back to the hotel without holding any session as the first Test draws closer.

The Windies will be hoping that nature stays out of the way this morning as they are also scheduled to have another practice session in their preparations for the Test matches.

Former England batsman Gary Ballance was named in Zimbabwe’s squad for the series and will be looking to make his  five-day match debut for his country of birth after switching allegiance from England.

The left-handed batter featured in 23 Tests for England, scoring 1 498 runs with four centuries and seven fifties at an average of 37.45.

Ballance, Ervine, and Donald Tiripano, who was recalled to the national team will bring the much-needed experience to a relatively young Zimbabwean team. – @brandon_malvin.