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Ellina Mhlanga Senior Sports Reporter
AFTER emerging as one of the outstanding players on Zimbabwe’s debut appearance at the Vitality Netball World Cup in 2019, Felisitus Kwangwa is looking forward to another memorable performance when they battle it out for honours at this year’s edition.
Zimbabwe will have a second dance at global showpiece to run from July 28 to August 6 in Cape Town, South Africa after securing their place during the qualifiers last year.
As the Nedbank-sponsored Gems return to the World Cup, Kwangwa, who is the captain, is looking forward to another exciting adventure.
“My personal target as an individual is to give out my best which will benefit the team at the end of the day so that we can proceed to the next stage.
“I can say every team or athlete wishes to do better as compared to their previous performance. So obviously we are looking forward to performing much better than what we did in our maiden appearance,” said Kwangwa.
She was the first of the three foreign-based players to join camp and had her first session with the rest of the team yesterday.
Gems assistant coach Tatenda Shinya said her presence was a morale booster for the team.
“The captain has joined camp, she started on a high note. It seems she is fit for the games and we just need to work on combinations. But it seems good because she has been playing with most of the guys in camp.
“So it’s going to be easier for us to just gel and she seems to bring the morale in camp because the other players have got so much trust in her. She brings stability in the team; so her presence is going to help us a lot in this last week of training,” said Shinya.
Australia-based shooter Nalani Makunde arrived yesterday while Joice Takaidza, also based in Australia is expected tomorrow.
Kwangwa’s exploits on the court at the 2019 World Cup in Liverpool, saw her being signed by Surrey Storm in England and became the first Zimbabwean player, from a local league to break into the Vitality Netball Superleague in the United Kingdom.
She made her debut appearance in their 2021 season and has been part of the club since then.
Her advice to her teammates is to give out their best and contribute to the success of the national team, which can also open doors for them.
“What I can say is play your heart out, at the same time enjoying (the game) because the moment you say I want to do this, I think you are already putting yourself under pressure and most likely to focus more on yourself.
“And remember we are playing a team sport so it’s all about doing your best that contributes to your team or that makes your team better.”
Kwangwa is aware of the high expectation for the team that finished a commendable eighth in their first World Cup four years ago.
“I can say basically we play so that we can entertain people, so obviously the expectation will be high. But at the same time as an athlete the reason why I got into netball was because I enjoy it. So the first thing I should do is to make sure I enjoy it,” said Kwangwa.
Zimbabwe will face Australia, Fiji and Tonga in Pool A, in the preliminary stage.
Just like in 2019, Zimbabwe and Australia were drawn in the same Pool and will be meeting in the preliminary stages for the second time.
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