Zim U19s ready for World Cup
AFTER almost two years of preparation, Zimbabwe Under-19 Cricket coach Prosper Utseya has high hopes for his team at this year’s ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup which starts today in South Africa.
The Minor Chevrons get their campaign underway on Sunday against Sri Lanka in Group C, which also has Namibia and former world youth cricket champions Australia.
Utseya, who was in charge of the Zimbabwe team when they finished 12th at the previous edition in the West Indies, is keen to see his charges making progress this time around.
“We are looking to finish higher this time. However, I want the boys to focus on one step at a time,” Utseya told Zimpapers Sports from the team’s base South Africa.
This is a tournament that they have prepared for in the last two years. As part of the preparations, they embarked on three tours to India and one to South Africa.
Just before the start of the tournament, they also played a preparatory series against Ireland which ended 1-1. They also played Asia Cup champions Bangladesh Under-19 during the unofficial practice matches in South Africa.
The Zimbabwean team travelled to South Africa early in order to acclimatise with the conditions. They started off their training camp in South Africa with a practice game against local side North West Colts before engaging Ireland and Bangladesh Under-19s, and experiencing mixed fortunes along the way.
They then travelled to Pretoria for the official warm up games against Ireland and the USA, which they both won comprehensively.
The Zimbabwe Under-19 side are now in Kimberly where they are set to play their World Cup group games against Sri Lanka, Australia and Namibia at the Diamond Oval.
They arrived in Kimberly on Wednesday, with Utseya happy with how the script has turned out so far for his team.
“Our preparations have gone well so far,” he said.
“The combinations have started to work just at the right time.
“It was important to win the warm up game(s); It definitely gave the boys confidence going forward. As I mentioned earlier, our batting and bowling combinations are beginning to work.
“I was definitely looking forward to winning the warm-up games because it was crucial to solidify our confidence before the group games.
“But I think we can still improve on the batting front. We are having good starts but still losing wickets in clusters. So it’s an area that we need to improve.
“The guys are getting good starts but are not converting to big scores. So I am hoping to see a big improvement in that department.”
The Zimbabwe Under-19 side can draw confidence in that they have had decent performances during the preparatory games.
The team is replete with talent and some of the young players to look forward to in the side include skipper Schonken, Kohl Eksteen, Newman Nyamhuri, Ryan Kamwemba, Panashe Taruvinga, Ronak Patel and Campbell Macmillan.
Skipper Schonken is excited by the challenges ahead. He has given credit to his teammates for the hard yards they have made in the run up to the global event; which they demonstrated in the wins against Ireland and USA during the official warm up games.
“I think the boys have been working very hard. Obviously we have won those two games and everyone is in high spirits right now,” he said.
“We start the World Cup with Sri Lanka, Australia and then Namibia. I think we are going to play against a few tough sides but I am sure we will be good. Our warm up games have gone according to plan and we have been playing quite nicely as a team.
“It’s been a long two years. Over the last two years the boys have come together really nicely on and off the field. So the relationships in the side are very good and the boys are all in high spirits,” said Schonken.
The only big setback Zimbabwe have suffered was the injury of Shaun Dzakatira, who had to return home after suffering a back strain.
MRI scans confirmed he would not be able to take part in the Under-19 World Cup games and has since been replaced by Ryan Simbi.
The team’s physiotherapist Anesu Mupotaringa said Dzakatira would need at least six weeks to recover from the injury.
“He complained of back pain and we had an MRI scans done. They confirmed a ligament injury on his back. So, given the level of cricket which we are playing now, he will not be able to participate.
“So we have sent him back home and he will be having a programme which he is going to follow. We expect him to be back on the field of cricket maybe within six weeks of rehab and treatment,” said Mupotaringa.
Zimbabwe Squad:
Nathaniel Hlabangana, Panashe Taruvinga, Ronak Patel, Campbell MacMillan, Ryan Kamwemba, Brendon Sunguro, Calton Takawira, Matthew Schonken (c), Anesu Kamuriwo, Newman Nyamhuri, Mashford Shungu, Kohl Eksteen, Panashe Gwatiringa, Ryan Simbi, Munashe Chimusoro.
Zimbabwe Fixtures:
21 January: v Sri Lanka, Kimberley
25 January: v Australia, Kimberley
27 January: v Namibia, Kimberley