Zim franchise cricket returns PDF Print E-mail

Sunday, 30 September 2012 00:00

Tinashe Kusema Deputy Sports Editor

As the backlash from Zimbabwe’s nightmarish run at the ongoing ICC Twenty20 World Cup continues to sting, attention is slowly shifting towards the country’s domestic season which kicks off on Saturday. A media ban has been imposed on the national team as the technical department

prepares to hand over its report to the cricket committee chaired by Alistair Campbell and possibly as a move to avoid a counter-attraction to the domestic league’s opening weekend.

That said, a surprising wind of optimism seems to have engulfed the country’s five franchises as they round up their preparations in anticipation of a busy couple of months during which old and new players will be hoping to attract the attention of the selectors before Zimbabwe’s next international assignment.

Despite a relatively low transfer window, cricket enthusiasts can still expect a bigger and better season this time around, the reason being the return of the domestic Twenty20 competition and national league.

This means an additional trophy has been added to the old format which already included the Pro50 over competition, Logan Cup and the international Stanbic Twenty20 competition.

Among the highlights is the possible return of two former Zimbabwe internationals, Sean Williams and Sean Ervine, to the fold.

Williams’ return has already been confirmed with officials from Tuskers saying he will have to prove his worth and commitment all over again before any contract talks can be held.

Heath Streak and Dave Houghton are also expected to begin their new coaching stints at Tuskers and Southern Rocks respectively.

Festivities begin with two mouth-watering ties pitting Mashonaland Eagles against Southern Rocks in Harare, while Matabeleland Tuskers host Mountaineers in Bulawayo.

Midwest Rhinos received a bye and will be inactive. The four teams will play a Pro50 over match which will be followed by a Twenty20 match. The Pro50 matches will be played on October 6 at Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club respectively.

The T20 matches will be played the following day.

Mash Eagles gaffer Kevin Curran has come out swinging and has ordered his charges to pick up from where they left last season.

“All things considered, I strongly believe we had a great outing last time around where we were finalist in two competitions, the Logan Cup and the T20 competition, while we won the third.

“That said, we talked about it with the boys and our target now is to go a step further than last season,” Curran said.

“Preparations have been going on smoothly for the last month or two and the good thing is that it is with roughly the same unit, aside from maybe Chamu Chibhabha, who has just joined us from Rocks.

“We expect him to gel into the groove quickly given he has played with most the boys in the team either with the national team or the ‘A’ side,” he said.

Rocks have been more active after having acquired the services of Tawanda Mupariwa from Tuskers, Trevor Garwe from Eagles and two more internationals are expected to come. Houghton’s likely to jet in tomorrow after which he will train with the team and maybe start active duty after the clash against Eagles.

Chief executive officer Givemore Makoni was bubbling with confidence ahead of the signing of Houghton who he believes could he the man to break Rocks’ jinx that sees them still the only team to win a Logan Cup match, let alone the trophy.

“Houghton comes with a wealth of experience, having won trophies with the teams he has coached and hopefully that trend will continue here at Rocks.

“We have done our best to bring in some new blood in our hope to add depth. We start with a tricky tie against Eagles and hopefully we will be able to have a result in both formats, because our aim is to take everything on offer as all clubs will be hoping to,” he said.

Tuskers v Mountaineers

Tuskers have confirmed having signed both Sean Williams and Sean Ervine, with the latter already training with the team while the former is expected sometime in November.

Tuskers chief Bradley Staddon confirmed the development.

“Indeed we have acquired both players. Williams, who is still to get a contract yet, has already started training with the team and appears to be in pretty good form.

“We would have loved to have had Ervine by now, but he still has commitments at his club in the UK who have made it into the T20 finals.

“We expect him to miss a game or two, but should have him by November,” he said.

Mountaineers coach Gary Brent, however, has come out and revealed his intentions to win this game at all costs.

“Last season we experienced a rocky start and ended up playing catch-up throughout the season and it is because of this that we want to get out of the blocks running and get as many points as possible.

“We have been privileged enough to have retained the bulk of our players and added new signings like Mark Pettini and Dan Hodgson, which will only work in our favour.

“Tuskers are a tough team, but we have done our work and should win both games,” he said.