Andrew
Veronica Gwaze
Zimbabwe senior netball team’s goal defender Elizabeth Mushore has been known to always have a smile on her face regardless of whether she is on or off the court.
Netball is her life.
“I never thought netball would take me this far,” she said.
“It has ceased to be just a sport, but a job and, literally, my life.
“When I step on the court, I feel good and this is why I always wear a smile.”
Known as the ‘Smiling Assassin’ by her peers, the beast in 21-year-old Mushore comes out whenever it is time to get onto the court. The lanky star, who also turns out for Premier Netball League champions Platinum Queens, has a way of sending an arena into a frenzy whenever she steps onto the court. She recently put up a player-of-the-match performance against Scotland at the Spar Diamond Challenge in Pretoria, South Africa. In the 41-all stalemate against the Europeans, Mushore left a lasting impression on avid netball followers. Ironically, it was also the very same arena in which she made her Gems debut earlier in August. Coming in as a third-quarter replacement for Tanaka Makusha, she thrilled fans with a spectacular turnover in her first touch of the game. That interception led to a 49-41 victory over bitter rivals Botswana and a berth at next year’s Netball World Cup for the Spar-sponsored Gems.
Her long-awaited debut had, however, been delayed by an ankle injury, which resulted in her failure to report for her initial call-up ahead of the Pent Series last year.
“When my turn at the qualifiers came, I was scared because it is never easy to make a debut at such a tournament and in such a huge game,” said Mushore.
“It was like carrying the cross for a whole nation on my back, because we needed to qualify for the World Cup and I did not want to cost the team.
“However, that performance gave me all the confidence I needed, and when we regrouped for the Spar Diamond Challenge, I knew I had to go back and remind the world who I am.
“The recognition (Player of the Match award) was just icing on the cake.” Mushore is now busy preparing for an even bigger assignment at an even bigger stage — the Netball World Cup slated for July 28 to August 6 in South Africa. The Gems will come up against global powerhouses Australia. Last week, they were drawn in Group A, together with Australia, Fiji and Tonga. England, Malawi, Scotland and Barbados have been placed in Group B, while Jamaica, South Africa, Wales and Sri Lanka will battle it out in Group C. Defending champions New Zealand will take on fast-rising Uganda, Singapore, and Trinidad and Tobago in Group D. The top two teams from each group will proceed to the knockout stages.
“We need to work on our mental strength, as, tactically, we are slowly getting there,” said Mushore.
“I believe, at these big stages, everything is largely about mental aptitude.
“This is to say every quarter is a new game, and we have to fight as a team right up to the end.
“We also need to learn not to rate a team based on its previous performance. Mentally, we should fight like winners.” The World Cup looks like the right stage for her to explode, especially given the fact she has been preparing for it all her life. She was introduced to the sport during her primary school days in Shamva. Initially, she considered netball as more of a pastime activity. In 2017, she was selected to take part in the National Youth Games in Victoria Falls, but her father refused to let her travel. The following year, she was again selected to play at the National Youth Games in Hwange. It took the intervention of her mother for her to finally make her debut. As fate would have it, she was spotted at the tournament and offered a scholarship at Pamushana Mission.
“Enrolling at a boarding school had always been my dream, and Pamushana gave me that chance.”
Mushore went on to bag countless accolades with the school, which has become a netball powerhouse over the years.
In 2019, she was part of the team that represented Zimbabwe at the Confederation of School Sport Associations of Southern Africa Games in Namibia.The rest is, as they say, is history.
Online Reporter