The Twenty20 are back

frustrating, bordering on infuriating, for the fans in Bulawayo who up to now have never really had the pleasure of watching big time T20 cricket.
However, there are a few setbacks in the upcoming tour by AB de Villiers and his men.

The first and probably the most disappointing one is that none of these matches will be televised live, which means that only a handful of cricket lovers will be treated to the game’s most popular version.
The second disappointment is that the matches are going to be clasped as warm up friendlies so if a player would achieve a special feat, it would certainly count for nothing.

But the reality is that Zimbabwe are desperate to play international cricket again.
Unlike the rest of the cricket family, Zimbabwe’s players have been starved of international competition while the rest have been involved in the Indian Premier League, as well as representing their respective countries.

A provisional squad of 24 has been in camp for the last week to hopefully shrug off the cobwebs of the off-season.
There were two worrying factors that stood out very distinctly throughout last season.
The first was the fielding, which could only be described as atrocious, for most of the season which begs the question — Are the players practicing in-between matches?

Yes, of course, there are the net sessions but why is it that the fielding never improved?
It was also noticeable that many players were found wanting in the fitness department.
Some of the fast bowlers looked pretty sharp in their first spells, but when they came back they were down on pace and barely troubled the international players.

Word has it that the players from out of Harare have found the physical training hard going.
Although some of them are reasonably fit from running, they have been found wanting in other areas such as upper body strength.
Looking back at players gone by, I wonder how strongly-built players such as Heath Streak and Andrew Waller, to name but a few, were able to maintain incredible upper body strength.

I prefer talking about the positives than the negatives and it is pleasing to note that three Zimbabweans will be involved in a T20 match in Canada when an All-Stars XI take on an Asian XI tomorrow.

Brendan Taylor and Prosper Utseya will no doubt be relishing the opportunity to take on a formidable Asian XI while Zimbabwean batting coach, Grant Flower, who will be coaching the All Stars XI and will be keen to make an impression.