Emerging Zim to tour South Africa

ZIMBABWE Cricket (ZC) has named a strong team for their Emerging side that is set to tour South Africa this weekend.

The team is a mixture of players who have had a taste of international cricket and those who are yet to get a feel of the big stage. The squad is made up of 15 players.

Some of the players took part in the just ended 2023 Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers. Chevrons wicket-keeper batter, Clive Madande has recovered from an injury he picked during the qualifiers and is set to make the trip to South Africa.

Under the stewardship of Zimbabwe senior men’s national team assistant coach, Stuart Matsikenyeri, some of the notable names that made the team are Madande, Joylord Gumbie, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Luke Jongwe, Roy Kaia, Tanunurwa Makoni and Jonathan Campbell.

The team is set to leave the country today for the five-match series which gets underway on Sunday. The five one-dayers, scheduled for 13, 15, 18, 21 and 23 August, will all be played at the Groenkloof Oval in Pretoria.

This will not be the first time that a series between the Chevrons and Proteas’ next generation of cricketers takes place. In April last year, South Africa ‘A’ toured Zimbabwe for a white-ball series where they played against Zimbabwe ‘XI’ at Harare Sports Club. The two played three 50-over matches and T20 games.

In 2021, a four-day game between Zimbabwe ‘A’ and South Africa ‘A’ was on the cards but was later cancelled due to the outbreak of Covid-19 which saw all sporting activities being suspended.

The tour to South Africa will also not be Zimbabwe Emerging’s first this year having earlier toured India where they spent 28 days. They played against the Mumbai based Omtex ICWC Cricket Institute. The upcoming series will be a good development period for the Zimbabwean youngsters.

Zimbabwe Emerging Men’s Squad:

Faraz Akram,Brian Bennett, JonathanCampbell,Tanaka Chivanga, Joylord Gumbie, Luke Jongwe, Roy Kaia, Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tanunurwa Makoni, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Tony Munyonga, Victor Nyauchi, Milton Shumba. — @brandon_malvin