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Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S Under-19 men’s cricket team have returned home with encouraging match outcomes from India where they played 15 matches with some of their players proving good as the team prepares for the 2024 World Cup.
The Young Chevrons landed back in the country on December 21.
Results may have not been what they were eyeing having won five, lost eight, drew one and had one match ending without a result, but there were positive takes from the batsmen and bowlers who are aiming to be the next generation of the country’s game.
With the bat, Macmillan Campbell is one name that is worth mentioning from the tour. From the nine innings he got to bat, the young Campbell finished with 287 runs and a high score of an unbeaten 122 runs with an average of 41 to top Zimbabwe’s batting charts.
Campbell was followed by Patel Ronak who, in the same number of innings, scored 246 runs and a high score of 100 not out with an average of 35.14.
In third place sits Nathaniel Hlabangana who finished with a total of 242 runs in eight innings and a best score of 55 runs not out, averaging 34. 57 from the tour.
The other batsman who managed to cross 200 from the series is Villan Changa who finished with 202 runs and a high score of 65. Changa finished with an average of 22.44.
With four batsmen managing to rack up good numbers, the bowlers also came to the party for the Southern Africa nation with the captain Matthew Schonken topping the charts for Zimbabwe. From nine outings, the skipper raked up 27 wickets with an economy rate of 3.84. The second placed leading wicket taker from Zimbabwe, Tinodaishe Mushonga had 13 wickets less than the leader with 14 scalps to his name.
In third place among the wicket takers sits Shaun Dzikatira who finished with 12 scalps with an economy of 4,41in eight innings. Dzikatira was followed by Mashford Shungu who took 11 wickets with an economy rate of 5.84 in eight innings.
The four were the only bowlers to cross double figures for Zimbabwe.
Changa and Ryan Kamwemba had the most dismissals for Zimbabwe with 15 and 13 removals respectively. The next in line, Calton Takawira finished with six ousting from the tour. The Zimbabwean squad in Asia comprised 20 players.
With impressive numbers throughout the tour, Schonken finished as Zimbabwe’s most valuable player. The Zimbabwean lads, under the mentorship of Prosper Utseya used the tour to the Asian nation as part of their preparations for the 2024
International Cricket Council (ICC) Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka and would take positives building up to the global showpiece as their players proved to have what it takes to compete and produce good numbers.
Zimbabwe have automatic qualification to the next edition of the 2024 World Cup in Sri Lanka. – @brandon_malvin.
Online Reporter