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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
EAGLES coach Douglas Hondo says his charges cannot afford complacency as they look forward to a challenging Logan Cup cricket match against Mid West Rhinos starting today at Harare Sports Club.
The Harare-based First Class cricket outfit is in high spirits after they kicked off their campaign in the four-day game with a comprehensive 101-run victory over Southern Rocks last weekend.
However, they come up against a Rhinos side that also fired some serious shots in their opening match after wrapping up a 25 runs victory over Mountaineers, with a day to spare.
Hondo told The Herald he was anticipating an exciting game.
“It should be lively. We have had some good games against Rhinos but if the guys stick to our plans, we should come out on top. We have got all the weapons. It’s just about knowing how to use them,” said Hondo.
Eagles batters got their team to a flying start last week with two big centuries from captain Chamu Chibhabha (149) and Craig Ervine (153) pushing their first innings score to 517 runs.
The side has a strong batting line up that also includes Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, Tadiwanashe Marumani and England-based former Zimbabwe Under-17 player Nick Welch, who has gained critical experience playing for Leicestershire County Cricket Club.
Welch, who now has English citizenship, has always been an Eagles boy ever since he made his First Class debut with the outfit at the age of 16 years back in 2014.
The bowling department also looks intimidating with the likes of Brad Evans, Tapiwa Mufudza and Faraz Akram and Tinashe Chivanga all looking to get a piece of the action. Hondo is convinced his team has all the weapons they need to dominate the Logan Cup this year.
“It’s as strong as it can be. We just need to manage that; just trying to keep the emotions in check because on paper we are strong but we can’t be complacent because of our strength. So the biggest task this season is to keep the guys’ emotions in check,” said Hondo.
“The Logan Cup was one of the three trophies we wanted to win this year. Unfortunately, we stumbled in the Pro-50 Championship.
“However, the guys are getting more used to the structure of how we are supposed to play as Eagles. So, with the start we had after scoring 500 and then bowling out a team out twice, we aim for more.
That’s a good start and that’s how we want to play our cricket. We want to be positive; scoring big hundreds and bowling out teams.”
The Eagles team will don their DBW branded jerseys for the first time in this match.
They signed a shirt sponsorship deal with one of Zimbabwe’s leading building material and allied products suppliers, Décor Builders Warehouse earlier this week.
Hondo is excited by the balance of youth and experience in his side and has welcomed with both hands national team captain Ervine, who crossed the floor from defending champions Tuskers recently.
“He is going to be one of the stabilising factors for Eagles because we have a very excitable batting line-up. It needs balance and Craig and Chamu are going to be the balance for the team; just to balance the aggressiveness,” said Hondo.
Their opponents Mid West Rhinos also have a side teeming with talent They are a good mixture of boyish charm and experience, led by their captain Prince Masvaure, who boasts of eight centuries and 30 First Class fifties.
They also have in their ranks national team all-rounder Ryan Burl and ex-Chevrons players like Prince Masvaure, Tarisai Musakanda, Neville Madziva, Carl Mumba, Michael Chinouya and Brandon Mavuta.
In addition, top order batsman Eddie Byrom, a Zimbabwe-born left-hander with an Irish passport, and explosive Welshman Kiran Carlson are key overseas players. The two were the biggest performers with the bat in the win against Mountaineers last week. Tafara Chingwara, who finished with eight match wickets last week, is another prospect to watch out for.
In another match set for today, champions Tuskers, who had a bye when the tournament started last week, begin their title defence against Rocks at Old Hararians.
Online Reporter