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Eddie Chikamhi
Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE all-rounder Sean Williams believes the energy displayed by the local cricket fans in the terraces on Sunday could be handy for the Chevrons going forward as they seek a flawless campaign in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier that began at the weekend.
The Chevrons rallied back to outclass minnows Nepal by eight wickets, in a high-scoring match played in front of a roaring crowd at the Harare Sports Club.
They face unpredictable opponents Netherlands at the same venue today. And, this being a midweek game, the Chevrons are praying for the crowds to turn up in numbers and cheer the team on.
Veteran left hander Williams told journalists that the power of the Zimbabwe cricket team supporters cannot be underestimated.
The Chevrons have been attracting huge crowds of late because of their positive brand of cricket and the atmosphere at their games has been nothing short of electric and intimidating to the opponents, while providing a huge morale-booster for the team.
“It’s big for the team,” said Williams.
“We discuss the crowd quite often, if not in every team talk we discuss playing for the crowd. They come out here, they want to be entertained and that’s our job.
“We love each and every song they sing out there and we really appreciate it. Actually I have no words to explain what they do for us as players out there. They lift us up in tough times and they tell us the truth as well, which is also very good,” said Williams.
The 36-year-old featured in his 150th ODI for Zimbabwe on Sunday and capped the milestone with the fastest century by a Zimbabwean batter in One-Day International cricket.
His unbeaten on 102 from 70 balls was key as the Chevrons completed an easy chase of Nepal’s towering total of 290 runs.
Skipper Craig Ervine, who was named Man of the Match for his unbeaten 121-runs, after facing 128 deliveries, also played a crucial knock in the match as did bowlers Wellington Masakadza 2-43 and Richard Ngarava 4-43.
But Zimbabwe had some fielding issues which they look to correct ahead of the clash with the Dutch, who have often proved to be tricky opponents.
The teams last met in Harare three months ago with Zimbabwe winning staging a comeback 2-1 win in the closing ODI Super League series. Apart from the practice series with the visiting Pakistan A side recently, the Chevrons have not played an international series since then.
But winning the first game against Nepal has helped set the foundation to build on in Group A, which also has the West Indies and USA.
“As a team, it’s huge because you always look to win the first game and not only that, but the next one and the one that comes after as well,” said Williams.
“I don’t want to look too far ahead into the tournament but the next game is just a day away. So, as it stands, I think there are a lot of positives that we can take (from the win against Nepal).
“I think our batting was exceptional and everyone is talking about myself and Craig (Ervine) but I think Joylord (Gumbie, 25 runs) and Wessly (Madhevere, 32 runs) played a massive role in the run chase.
“I think they were exceptional. I mean, Joylord on his debut in front of this massive crowd, he really did something special. I look forward to watching what he has got in store for us.
“It was huge (to get it right in the top order). As you saw in the recent series against Pakistan A quite often we were four or five down really quickly, like we could be 60 for five.
“Having Joy (Gumbie) coming in there and just being solid, playing some strokes; he is a positive person, he is a cool, calm customer and I think having him and Craig together up there and Wessly coming in next, it’s a very good combination.”
Both Zimbabwe and Netherlands failed dismally in the Super League, which guaranteed the top seven teams automatic qualification to the ICC 2023 World Cup finals to be held in India later this year.
Netherlands captain Scott Edwards has the monumental task of leading the Dutch side riddled with several absentees in the Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
However, the captain doesn’t need to look too far back for confidence, having led the team out of the First Round into the Super 12 stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia.
In the absence of several key players due to commitments in the UK, including the experienced Roelof van der Merwe and Colin Ackermann, Netherlands will be in search of fresh faces that would be keen to make an impression on the world stage.
Although the Netherlands have several players absent, they will be glad that Bas de Leede is in the squad. He was one of the key performers when Netherlands made it to the Super 12 stage in the T20 World Cup last year, picking up 13 wickets in eight matches while also contributing important runs with the bat. They also have experienced players such as Max O’Dowd to look up to with the bat.
Online Reporter