Ireland and Scotland Tour reflection

Mixed feelings overall from this tour of Europe especially with the anti climax end to one of our very best, Brendan Taylor's career. What a legend, a true patriot of Zim cricket. The fact that ZC have not planned any official event for him just shows how insensitive that lot is. Up till now, nothing from the director, his mate for many years, nothing from the board, nothing from the minister and this is such a disgrace on their part.

Anyway on to the tour. Eventually we got some wins in, however we should be very worried as it seems we are now at par with Scotland even, who seem to be on their way up and us stuck in limbo. Goes to show that the most organized boards will generally do better and grow. I will mention a few players here and my opinion on their performance on tour.

Richard Ngarava

This guy has really benefited from the game time. He was very erratic when I first saw him but on this tour really bowled well. He stuck to his good line and length, added variations and did not give away that boundary line every over like he used. Despite that horrific over yesterday, he has been our best bowler on this tour even defended 9 and 7 final overs which are really good signs for us at the death. Also he is only 23!

Milton Shumba

I bashed him when he scored 70 odd in about 250 balls vs SA 'A' but seeing how he can also play a match winning 66 of 29 balls then I say he is a very good batsmen who will score hundreds in both tests and ODIs. He has shown that he is very patient, plays each ball on merit, has shots to get him 1s and 2s and can also hit big sixes against decent pace bowling. Very smart cricketer who I think would be a good opener in ODIs and number 3 in tests. On this tour he has shown his qualities and by far played one of the best match winning run chases I have seen by Zimbabwe in a long time. He is only 20!

Wellington Masakadza

These are the type of players who I think have had to figure out things on their own without any coaching at all, just talent. I mentioned once that his tight line and length is actually crucial in limited overs cricket. He has shown he can open the bowling, bowl at the death and also can be called upon to stem the flow of runs. These days he is also taking wickets at crucial stages which then allows our strike bowlers to have the freedom to bowl attacking lines. Also one of our best fielders. Overall he had an excellent tour and he may want to work on his batting, that odd 15-20 runs at the death can help us in some situations. Still fairly young at 26.

Tadiwa Marumani

It appears the coaches just tell this guy to play to his strengths, that's it, regardless of the pitch, the size of the ground, match situation just go out there and bash us to a good start. This has made him very reckless. We have seen his talent and the ability to clear the rope but his shot selection has been shocking game after game and this tour really damaged his confidence, never passed 10 I think. I agree they have to persist with him but he needs to play the situations better and respect good balls and good bowlers who he will have to face as an opener. Facing good balls upfront means you need to have the ability to play strike rotating shots of the good ones, and pounce on the bad ones for boundaries. He needs coaching for this. Still hope as he is only 19.

Wes Madhevere

Again very talented, lacking a batting coach. Also one who wants to hit boundaries of every good delivery as we saw with most of his dismissals on tour. Only yesterday did I see him bat sensibly all tour and he had a decent score of 40 odd. Played the ones and the twos and punished the bad balls. I would largely attribute him batting like that to Shumba who was the calm head when they were batting. The ability is there, just now the mindset and temperate that needs fixing. They should be taught that a good start does not mean hitting every ball. Even Babar Azam would respect our good balls. I do not think we will see many hundreds from Wes, but a lot of 60s and 70s which is fine if the other batsmen contribute. Another 21 year old.

Dion Myers

Pretty poor tour for him, but as with Wes, they need to learn how to create big innings. Because they are so good at playing boundary shots, emphasis now should be on strike rotation. He will come good with time in the right environment.

Blessing Muzarabani

I would be a bit worried here because in as much as he picked up wickets, I really expected our best bowler to destroy the Irish and the Scotts in such bowler friendly conditions. Richard seems to now have a good area where he is now consistently unplayable and I think Blessing is not the finished article yet. With that height he really needs to be getting more bowler induced wickets, (LBW, Bowled, Caught behind). This was not his best tour and also one who is in need of a good coach not someone who just tells him to bowl aimlessly in the nests.

Luke Jongwe

Also had a decent tour, his bowling was top notch and you can almost trust him to get you a breakthrough. Only concern is that when his being hit in the over he goes big. That could be a mental issue which he needs to work on and he should have a go to delivery that does not result in a boundary in such situations.

Craig Ervine

Class batsmen. By far the batsmen of the tour. Not sure how long we will have him for but he is someone we really still need after BT retirement. He opened well yesterday, set the tone for the win and I think he captained well. He knew when to keep good bowlers on and off overall and he used Ngarava very well all tour. Should we stick with him as skipper in ODIs? I think we should. Brought us a series win after a long time.

Regis Chakabva

As a wicketkeeper I think he really is amongst the best in the world. Some very good catches this tour and generally very good behind the stumps. His ability to rotate the strike makes him a good opener. He just needs to play balls on heir merit also as he has had some very soft dismissals this tour. Also a very good leader and a very decent guy to have as your vice captain. He probably has 3 years in him, but we really need to start grooming his replacement.

Tendai Chatara

Looks like his best days are now behind him but he still has 3 years within him. T20 against top opposition is now out of his abilities but I think he is still useful in the ODIs as a 3rd seamer of a seam friendly track as he will need all the assistance he can get. He had a fairly decent tour, picked up a handful of wickets and I feel he should remain in and around the team.

Sean Williams

Decent tour as expected. Bowled well and batted well. Won us the second t20 pretty much and he is someone we definitely need in the next 2-3 years for his experience and winning mentality.

Sikander Raza

Pretty decent in the ODIs. Another useful all round performance from him this tour. He seemed a bit off in his demeanor when he played. Hope he is not thinking about retiring soon as he is very much needed in the 2-3 years to come.

Ryan Burl

Really not yet convinced on what his role is in the team. His leg spin is pretty awful at the moment, although he did well in the 1st T20 vs Ireland, then did well with the bat in game 2. In my opinion, he should be a middle order batsmen who bowls part time, batting at 5 or 6. He need a bit of time to settle in (Score 1s and 2s) and he also can hit hard. This means coming in at 7 or 8 is a waste, and coming in the top 3 is a bit too early.

Coaching Staff

This assignment should be their last. We have a team of players of are just starting their careers and they need a coach who can adapt to these needs. A high school teacher would struggle to teach primary school kids effectively as their needs and assumed knowledge is very different. These youngsters need a patient and caring coach. One who will formulate a game plan tailor made for the kind of players we have. I'd say rope in Dave Houghton now and give him 75% of the Taylor package!