John Ward: India in Zimbabwe, a preview (24 Sep 1998)

24 October

India in Zimbabwe preview

by John Ward

Two of Zimbabwe's most experienced players will be missing for the home series against India during the next three weeks. Grant Flower broke a finger attempting a return catch off his bowling in a club match last Sunday, while Guy Whittall has just had an operation to repair a long-standing knee injury and will be out of the game for several weeks. In addition Eddo Brandes has not properly recovered from the Ôflu he picked up at the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia and is unlikely to play.

These are major blows to the home side, but at least almost all their other pace bowlers are fit at the time of writing. The only exception is Everton Matambanadzo, who has a long-standing shoulder injury; he is fit to bowl but is unable to throw properly. John Rennie and Gary Brent return to the squad, and included for the first time is 17-year-old Falcon College all-rounder and national Under-19 player Mluleki Nkala.

The Test against India will be the first played by Zimbabwe that Flower will miss, leaving his brother Andy and captain Alistair Campbell as the only two ever-presents. Andy indeed has also played in all Zimbabwe's one-day internationals since the 1991/92 World Cup. It may also cost Grant the chance of becoming the first Zimbabwean to reach 2000 Test runs; he is just nine short, and may be pipped by Andy, who needs a further 58. In GrantÕs absence, probably either Craig Wishart or Trevor Madondo will open with Campbell in the one-day matches.

Still, morale is as high as usual in the Zimbabwean camp; coach Dave Houghton says that the view among the players is that the Indians are in for a hiding in Bulawayo this coming weekend. Those who know the team also know that they have the ability to do so, and the memory of the last contest between the teams at that venue eighteen months ago will encourage the home side, as it presented them with the easiest of their one-day international victories. Since then Zimbabwe twice gave India a hard fight in the subcontinent at the end of last season.

But translating talent into performance and results has always been a problem for Zimbabwe. As Campbell has frequently said, one only learns to win by winning, and Zimbabwe have not yet had enough of that. Their one-wicket loss to Sri Lanka in the recent Commonwealth Games is further evidence of that. According to Houghton, this was another match Zimbabwe should have won easily, but their batsmen scored about 40 runs fewer than they should have done, and their bowlers were too erratic.

Zimbabwe's bowling has perhaps more depth than the Indians, while they have a proven batting line-up, even in the absence of Flower and Whittall. The Indians have, however, two batsmen of genius in Tendulkar and Azharuddin, and if either of those is on song, then Zimbabwe will have no chance however well they play. This makes predictions of the result of the three-match one-day series hazardous. Perhaps their greater experience of winning gives India the edge, but Zimbabwe have always put up a fine performance on their home soil -- and one day they really will put together the technique of winning international matches regularly.

Zimbabwe squad: Alistair Campbell (captain), Andy Flower (vice-captain), Craig Wishart, Trevor Madondo, Murray Goodwin, Craig Evans, Heath Streak, Paul Strang, John Rennie, Gary Brent, Andrew Whittall, Mluleki Nkala, Adam Huckle and Pommy Mbangwa.