Don’t take cricket fans for granted: Mukuhlani

IN recent years, cricket has experienced an extraordinary resurgence in Zimbabwe, with the iconic Queens and Harare Sports Clubs consistently packed to capacity. Whenever the Chevrons grace their home turf, it feels as though entire provinces rally behind them, a phenomenon most evident during the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers.

The driving force behind this cricket renaissance lies in the remarkable success achieved by the national team. Victory after victory has rekindled the passion of fans, breathing new life into the sport and even challenging the long-standing dominance of football and rugby in the nation.

The optimism surrounding cricket’s revival is palpable, with the sport’s governing body keenly aware of this newfound fervour. However, they also recognise the ever-present threat of supporter fatigue. In the world of sports, fans tend to drift away when their beloved team falters.

Zimbabwe Cricket’s Chairperson, Tavengwa Mukuhlani, who recently secured another four-year term, underscores the importance of maintaining the team’s winning streak to prevent this fatigue from setting in.

Both the men’s and women’s teams have come agonisingly close to global events but narrowly missed out. Mukuhlani acknowledges that this isn’t satisfactory.

“I am very grateful for the fans, they have been amazing and filling stadiums, Queens, Harare Sports Club. I walked past Mutare Sports Club last weekend and at 9.30 in the morning, it was a very cold day, there were fans watching NPL.

“I think, to sustain that we need a product. They are coming because there is a product so the first thing is that we need to make sure that we have a product and how do we have this product. We need to have programmes that are well structured, where athletes produced are at a high-quality level and one of them is the NPL. We would want our NPL to be as exciting and engaging as it can be where fans can go and watch their local heroes and heroines when they play cricket.

“But most importantly, we need to have a Chevrons team that wins matches, near misses are not sustainable, support fatigue will creep in. We need Lady Chevrons that win matches, we need a Chevrons team that qualifies for major events, for major honours. We also need Lady Chevrons that qualify for major ICC events.

“We want to go beyond where we are at the moment so for us at the moment the thrust is to make sure we have a Lady Chevrons team that is at the World Cup, a Chevrons team that is at the World Cup and an Under-19 team that performs then we can sustain the current wave of interest that is in the fans,” said Mukuhlani.

In the quest to maintain fan interest, ZC also places a premium on good governance. Mukuhlani believes that fans appreciate a well-run organisation that operates with transparency.

“But outside playing cricket, fans shy away from an organisation that is not well-run. If there is scandal after scandal, if there is poor governance, because remember, fans are the stakeholders, they pay their money to come and watch cricket, they don’t pay their money to come and see Mukuhlani. I am just there to shepherd the ship but they want a well-run organisation, they want a transparent organisation, they want to feel that they are part of the sport that they support.

“So, our fan engagement does that, we are one of the organisations that publish our results on our website for transparency purposes. The reason why we are audited annually by a reputable audit firm is to make sure that our fans, our stakeholders are engaged, they see what is happening at Zimbabwe Cricket and they understand,” said Mukuhlani.

ZC is also lobbying the ICC to address the imbalance in bilateral cricket in a move that will afford the Chevrons and the Lady Chevrons an opportunity to increase the number of games on the international stage. However, the men’s national team will continue playing cricket against traditional allies such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

As Zimbabwe continues to make its mark in the world of cricket, beating the odds and rejuvenating the sport, the love for cricket in the nation is bound to grow stronger. Presently, there is much to celebrate in Zimbabwean cricket, having emerged from past challenges, and the future holds promise and excitement for all involved. — @brandon_malvin.