Mutendera’s choices under fire

Brandon Moyo, [email protected]
DAVID Mutendera, the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) Convener of Selectors, is under scrutiny for his player selection.

Despite some players consistently performing well and knocking on the selection door for years, they remain overlooked for national team selection. Zimbabwe is gearing up for a historic one-off Test match against Ireland in Belfast, while another team is in England and yet another set to play against South Africa Emerging.

However, certain deserving players have not made it into any of these teams, raising questions about the fairness of the selection process. Mutendera claims that the team for Ireland was chosen based on performances in the domestic four-day competition, the Logan Cup. Yet, his selections have raised eyebrows.

For instance, Brain Chari, the leading run-scorer in the Logan Cup with 692 runs, including a double century, was not selected for either the national team or the Zimbabwe A side in England. This raises concerns about the value of the Logan Cup if top performers are ignored.
In contrast, Roy Kaia, who did not score a century in the Logan Cup, made the team.

Prince Masvaure, with only 145 runs in the Logan Cup, was also selected over players with significantly better records. Mutendera justifies Kaia’s selection by highlighting his ability to bowl off-spin, but this explanation does little to quell the controversy.

When asked for further clarification, Mutendera confirmed that the Logan Cup performances were considered, but the inconsistencies in his selections suggest otherwise.”We looked at players who mainly did well in the Logan Cup. Players who did well in the Logan Cup are the majority with some experience from the captain Craig Ervine and Sean Williams,” he said.

Despite claims that Logan Cup performances were considered, Chari’s impressive statistics, including a double century, were seemingly disregarded. Players with lesser achievements, some without even a century, were selected instead.

Mutendera justifies the inclusion of certain batters by citing their ability to bowl off-spin, but this rationale does little to explain the apparent inconsistencies in the selection process.”It doesn’t matter (on Chari having better stats).

It depends with whom he will be competing with for the position. You can’t compare players who play in different positions, Kaia also bowls off spin,” he said angrily. Despite frequently batting at number four for Tuskers, Chari has also opened the batting for both his franchise and the national team.

His exclusion from the squad raised eyebrows, but he wasn’t the only one. Ainsley Ndlovu, despite his strong domestic performances and useful contributions with the bat, was also overlooked for both the national team and Zimbabwe A.

After the Logan Cup, where Ndlovu took 21 wickets, Zimbabwe hosted Durham County Cricket Club for two three-day matches. Ndlovu shone in these games, finishing with 10 wickets, including a five-wicket haul. He was only one wicket behind Callum Parkinson, who had 11 wickets at an average of 17.8 and an economy of 3.63.

With the bat, Ndlovu scored 86 runs in the series, making him the fourth leading run-scorer, surpassing Kaia, who managed only 21 runs. Given his consistent performances, one wonders what more Ndlovu needs to do to impress Mutendera and his selection team.

When questioned about the apparent bias and Ndlovu’s exclusion, Mutendera was unable to provide satisfactory answers.”I thought you were only calling to discuss team dynamics,” he said before he hung up the phone.

With three Zimbabwean squads currently active, one would expect a fair selection process. However, questionable choices that even the convener struggles to justify continue to dominate.

What is the purpose of domestic cricket if top performers are consistently overlooked? This situation suggests ulterior motives by those responsible for rewarding deserving players. Fair selection should be the standard, regardless of circumstances.

Cricket in Zimbabwe has been struggling, and this trend will persist if unfair selections continue week after week. To grow and develop the game, players who excel should be given the same opportunities as everyone else. —@brandon_malvin