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Eddie Chikamhi
Senior Sports Reporter
TAKASHINGA all-rounder, Roy Kaia, has set himself the target to push for national team recognition in the upcoming domestic cricket season.
The 29-year-old received his only national team cap, five years ago, when he was called up for the Pakistan tour.
However, he did not get the opportunity to bat when he was drafted in the third One Day International after the match was washed out with Zimbabwe chasing Pakistan’s 296/9.
Kaia, who has been around for a decade, is still hungry to don the Chevrons colours, although it appears time is no longer on his side.
After he won the Player-of-the-Tournament award, for the recent National Premier League, Kaia yesterday said his next mission is to fight for national team recognition.
He told The Herald that he has turned down an opportunity to play club cricket in Australia to focus on the upcoming first class and Pro-50 Championships.
Kaia played for Mountaineers last season and was among the top performers, with both the ball and bat, before competition was abolished following the outbreak of the coronavirus.
But, he will be retracing his footsteps back to his former club, Southern Rocks, this season.
Kaia believes the Player-of-the-Tournament award, in the NPL, has helped set the momentum for his Chevrons dream.
“I dedicate my award to the team and everyone who played a part in Takashinga’s success,” he said.
“My focus now is on the domestic franchise league, which may start any time from now. I look forward to continuing with my good all-round performances and, hopefully, I will be able to knock on the national team doors again.
“In fact, my target this season is to fight for recognition. I had one national team call-up I think, five years back, and I have felt the pain of being overlooked over the years despite my good efforts.
“Obviously, the selectors have their own considerations but, if you look at the statistics, I am always among the top performers both with the ball and bat and, somehow, my name never gets picked.
“I would want to continue with the momentum from this NPL and, hopefully, I will be able to impress.’’
The all-rounder finished among the best performers in the inaugural NPL.
He led Takashinga with 20 wickets and was the fourth best wicket-taker in the tournament.
Kaia was also the leading run-scorer for Takashinga, and fourth in the tournament, after putting together 241 runs in eight NPL games. A top-order batsman, and front-line off-spinner, Kaia boasts an impressive record, across the three formats.
Following an impressive junior career, where he represented Zimbabwe Under-19s on 16 occasions, Kaia broke into provincial cricket in 2009 when he made his first-class and List-A debut’s for Centrals.
He has featured for the Southern Rocks and Mountaineers.
The all-rounder enjoyed a barnstorming 2014/15 domestic season, particularly in the one-day format, topping the Pro50 Championship run charts (381 runs at 56.20).
His exploits culminated with a ODI debut for Zimbabwe against Pakistan in May 2015, but unfortunately, weather curtailed his involvement, with the game ending in a no-result. Kaia hasn’t featured since, yet he continues to enjoy success in domestic cricket, particularly in the first class and List-A competitions, where he averages high-20s respectively, with the bat, and has taken over 100 wickets combined. The talented all-rounder has spent the past two years plying his trade successfully in the UK. After an injury-curtailed season with Cumbria League club Haverigg (2018), which included 35 wickets at 16.08, he returned to excel for Bognor Regis in the Sussex League in 2019 and finished as the top wicket-taker after claiming 46 scalps.
He was the third highest ranked batsman with 534 runs from 18 innings.
His performances included a ton and four fifties. The club have retained him for the next season. “I will be returning to the UK on April 25 next year. The league will start on May 4 but before going back I would want to make a mark in the domestic league,” said Kaia.
Online Reporter