Online Reporter
Brandon Moyo, Zimpapers Sports Hub
ON the humid shores of Chattogram, where the bustling port city hums with life and the call to prayer drifts on the breeze, Zimbabwe’s cricketers stand on the brink of history.
It has been 14 long years since the Chevrons last celebrated a Test series victory and fittingly, it was against the same opposition they now face, Bangladesh.
Tomorrow morning, when the second Test gets underway at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Zimbabwe will walk onto the field carrying more than just their whites and willow. They will carry the hopes of a nation that has long yearned for days like these, days when victory is not just a dream but an expectation.
Fresh from a nerve-shredding three-wicket win in Sylhet, confidence within the Zimbabwe camp is sky-high. Yet, captain Craig Ervine knows better than to get carried away.
“We are really confident,” he said.
“Winning a Test match gives you belief, that sense that you can get over the line, even here in Bangladesh, where it’s never easy. Now, we are just going to sit down and reassess. Mindset is everything, especially after a win like the one in Sylhet.”
For Zimbabwe, the match, which starts at 6am Zimbabwean time, is about more than a series win; it is about redemption. A win here would not just break the 14-year series drought, it would underline that Zimbabwe cricket’s rebirth is no fleeting miracle.
But if the Chevrons dare to dream, they must also beware. Bangladesh, bruised and embarrassed on home soil, have made two significant changes to their squad to tilt the scales.
The experienced Anamul Haque, Bangladesh’s batting heavyweight in the Dhaka Premier League, returns to bolster the top order.
In stellar form with four hundreds, three unbeaten, in his last ten innings, Anamul replaces Zakir Hasan, who did not feature in Sylhet. Anamul, set to play his first Test in nearly three years, will be desperate to re-establish himself in the longest format, having managed just 23 runs at best from his five Test appearances since debuting in 2013.
Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Tanvir Islam has been called up to replace seamer Nahid Rana, who has departed for his Pakistan Super League (PSL) duties with Peshawar Zalmi. Tanvir is no novice, boasting 134 wickets from 41 first-class matches, at an average of 27.06, numbers that hint at the threat he could pose on a surface expected to wear and tear as the game unfolds.
For Bangladesh, the second Test is a battle for pride and parity. For Zimbabwe, it is a golden opportunity to step into the pages of cricketing history, to remind the world and perhaps even themselves, that their journey is not yet done.
It was in August 2011 that Zimbabwe last tasted series victory, defeating Bangladesh in a lone Test at Harare Sports Club. Since then, a generation of fans has grown up on near-misses and fleeting moments of glory. Now, with one hand already on the trophy after their Sylhet triumph, the Chevrons have a chance to finish the story, to turn hope into memory and struggle into triumph.
Come tomorrow morning, the stakes could not be higher.
And for Zimbabwe, the time could not be riper.
Bangladesh Squad for Second Test
Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shadman Islam, Anamul Haque, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahidul Islam Ankon, Jaker Ali, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Tanvir Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Khaled Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib.
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