dyton mupawaenda
Zimbabwe Cricket have announced Zimbabwe’s squad for the historic two-match Test series against Afghanistan, with seven uncapped players – including opening batter Ben Curran – earning call-ups for the festive season fixtures in Bulawayo.
The series marks a momentous occasion for Zimbabwean cricket as the country prepares to host its first Boxing Day Test at home in 28 years, set to take place from 26-30 December.
This will be followed by Zimbabwe’s inaugural New Year’s Test, scheduled for 2-6 January 2025.
Both matches will be played at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
Apart from Curran, the other uncapped players picked for the series are batter Johnathan Campbell, wicketkeeper-batters Tadiwanashe Marumani and Nyasha Mayavo as well as pace bowlers Trevor Gwandu,
Takudzwa Chataira and Newman Nyamhuri. Craig Ervine will captain the Zimbabwe side, with the experienced Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava providing a strong core to the squad.
Zimbabwe’s return to Boxing Day cricket brings back memories of their last home Boxing Day Test in 1996, a rain-affected drawn match against England at Harare Sports Club.
Since then, Zimbabwe have only played Boxing Day Tests abroad against New Zealand in 2000 and South Africa in 2017, the latter being a pink-ball day-night fixture in Port Elizabeth.
The upcoming New Year’s Test will be a first for Zimbabwe, both at home and internationally, further adding to the significance of this series.
ZIMBABWE TEST SQUAD: Craig Ervine (captain), Ben Curran, Brian Bennett, Johnathan Campbell, Takudzwa Chataira, Joylord Gumbie, Trevor Gwandu, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Nyasha Mayavo, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Newman Nyamhuri, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams – ZimCricket
Online Reporter