Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira – [email protected]
THE Zimbabwe senior netball team will once again get to test their level of preparedness ahead of the start of the 2023 World Cup Finals when they face Barbados in a second friendly match in Cape Town, South Africa today.
The Gems as the national team is affectionately known, lost 64-36 to England in their first preparatory game.
Next up is Barbados who should provide enough competition for Zimbabwe as they have top players in their ranks in the likes of Sasha and Kadeen Corbin who have both had stand out Netball Super League (NSL) careers, with Sasha playing for Saracens Mavericks, (her 10th year in the captaincy role) and Kadeen representing Team Bath this season.
Throughout the 2023 NSL season, Sasha and Kadeen have both worked tirelessly for their teams, with Saracens Mavericks finishing in fifth place while Team Bath finished in ninth.
Last month, Sasha announced her retirement, with this World Cup being her last time stepping onto the court.
Kadeen had another stellar season with Team Bath in the GA position and finished second with her side at the Fast5 All Stars Tournament.
This will be Sasha and Kadeen’s first Netball World Cup, after switching nationalities to play for the Barbados side. They face England in their opening game of the tournament on July 28 in South Africa. After this preparatory match Zimbabwe will also face Scotland and Wales on Wednesday.
Ranked 13th in the world, the Gems find themselves are in a tough Pool A with heavyweights like Australia and Fiji.
Despite the challenging draw, the Gems are determined to make their mark and improve on their eighth-place finish in the previous World Cup.
The Gems’ journey to the World Cup has been nothing short of remarkable, securing their second successive qualification at the Africa Netball World Cup Qualifiers last year.
The Zimbabwe women’s netball team ended their 2019 Vitality World Cup campaign in eighth position overall, after losing their final placing match to Uganda 58-47.
Despite not getting the ultimate prize, which went to New Zealand after they beat the reigning champions Australia 52-51, the Gems still made history for the country by qualifying for the second round of the competition after finishing second in a group that included reigning world champions Australia, Northern Ireland and Sri Lanka.
Although they overcame Barbados in the second round, defeats to New Zealand, Malawi, Jamaica and finally Uganda, saw the Gems slip to eighth place in their maiden appearance.
— @innocentskizoe
Online Reporter