Dion Ebrahim - a short biography

FULL NAME: Dion Digby Ebrahim BORN: 7 August 1980, at Bulawayo MAJOR TEAMS: CFX Academy, Zimbabwe Board XI KNOWN AS: Dion Ebrahim. Nickname: Diggers, Digs BATTING STYLE: Right Hand Bat BOWLING STYLE: Right Arm Medium Pace OCCUPATION: Professional cricketer

FIRST-CLASS DEBUT: CFX Academy v Sri Lankans, at Kwekwe, 12 November 1999 TEST DEBUT: Awaited ODI DEBUT: Awaited

BIOGRAPHY (February 2000)

As the first intake of students from the Zimbabwe Cricket Academy, that of 1999, has been unleashed on the cricketing world, it has been interesting to see how they have coped and developed in the next stage for them, that of Zimbabwean domestic cricket. One who has made an immediate impact has been the cheerful Universals batsman Dion Ebrahim.

Dion, according to Academy director Gwynne Jones, was one of the most impressive of his students, both as a cricketer and as a man. He arrived very much a rough diamond, but through his own hard work and enthusiasm made tremendous progress and is now reaping the rewards. Dion has quickly become a member of the Zimbabwe Board XI, although often sent in to bat too low in the order to give him the best possible chance of performing, and has recently run up a string of good scores for his club side in league cricket.

Although his family now lives in Harare, Dion was born in Bulawayo. His father Rashid used to play regularly for Bulawayo Sports Club, and Dion remembers from the age of about six playing in the back yard, and says with a smile that 'being the youngest I always got the raw deal of having to face both my father and my brother!' It did however get him used to better quality bowling at a young age. He also used to watch his father play.

He attended Whitestones Primary School in Bulawayo, coaching beginning at Grade 3 level, although it was not until he reached Grade 5 that he was selected for the school colts team. He then spent two years in the first team, being vice-captain throughout his school years. He began mainly as a pace bowler, but one day when the team wicket-keeper was injured Dion offered to take his place, and stayed behind the stumps for the rest of the season. "My bowling went on a downward slope from there, and never actually came back," he laughs. Universals cricket chairman Max Ebrahim (no relation) would disagree, though, as he rates Dion's medium-paced swingers quite highly. Dion continued to keep wicket for a time at high school, but his coach there eventually decided that it would be better for him to concentrate on his batting. In one match for Whitestones he claims to have taken all ten wickets in an innings, but laughingly admits that it was actually nine wickets to him as a bowler, while he ran out the tenth batsman off his own bowling!

Dion names Dave Fleming, a teacher at Falcon College, as the main cricketing influence of his schooldays. Dave had a son at Whitestones at that time and he used to come in and help with the coaching himself during the week, together with some of the senior Falcon players, including Guy Whittall. Mr Omar Mohammad was the official Whitestones first-team coach, and he also helped in the development of the young Dion.

In his Grade 6 year at Whitestones, 1992, Dion was selected for the Matabeleland schools team to play in the national primary schools cricket week, and the following year he made the national Under-13 team, the Partridges, to travel to the South African Week; in his first year at high school he was still the right age to make a second trip. He had a highly impressive record at primary school, scoring his first century in Grade 6. There was a tradition at the school that a batsman who scored a century had the honour of planting a tree at the cricket ground, and Dion planted three. His centuries came against Lilfordia, Rydings and St Thomas Aquinas. His highest score in any class of cricket to date, 163, came at Falcon, but he cannot remember the opposition.

Dion began his high school career at Falcon College with a bang, recording a century in his first match. This was followed by a 'golden duck', and then another century. He believes he scored no fewer than twelve centuries in inter-school cricket that year. In his Form Two year he went for trials for the national Under-15 team, the Fawns, but did not gain selection; the following year he found that the age limit had been adjusted to fall into line with the regulations for the Under-15 World Cup, and he was just too old.

He did not win selection for his school first team until the end of his Form Three year, though, as he says selection was strictly on age and there was no early promotion unless a player was really talented - although if twelve centuries in a year does not meet that qualification it is hard to tell what does! He began for the first team at number seven or eight, but quickly moved up to four or five. In his last two years he scored two or three centuries for the first team. Again the influence of Dave Fleming was critical in his development, as well as his other coaches Dave Grant and Richard Harrison. Dave Fleming, Dion says, 'really nurtured me from when I was very young to the day I left, which I appreciate greatly'.

His next chance at representative cricket came in the 1997/98 season when he was selected for the national Under-19 team to play in the South African Schools Week and the Under-19 World Cup in South Africa. He played two notable innings in the World Cup at number six in the order, an innings of 48 not out seeing Zimbabwe home in a tight match against West Indies which enabled them to qualify for the last eight, and then held the Zimbabwean innings together with 60 not out, by far the top score of the innings, in a vain effort against South Africa.

In 1998 came his final year at school, when he had the honour of captaining both his school team and the Matabeleland Under-19 side which won the inter-provincial tournament for the Father Nixon Shield that year. He was also appointed vice-captain of the national Under-19 team.

Dion originally planned to go to university, probably Cape Town or Stellenbosch, on leaving school, to study physiotherapy, with a view to using his skills with sports. But he heard of the proposed establishment of a Zimbabwe Cricket Academy and thought it would be a good idea to take a year off and further his cricket, a decision he has not regretted. He was duly accepted, and afterwards again put on hold for a year his university plans for 2000, deciding that his cricket had developed so well that he should take advantage of the experience for another year. He still has his eyes on a university career in the future, though.

Dion actually found he had a hard choice to make between the national cricket academy and the rugby academy. He was a promising Under-19 rugby player, at fly-half, but felt that he would be able to enjoy a longer and better career with cricket.

He had a good all-round season in 1999 with Upminster in the Essex league, averaging over 50 with the bat, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience both on and off the field. During his academy year he was also selected for the first time for the Zimbabwe Board XI, although as a junior player he was generally placed too low in the batting order to be seen to best advantage. He did play a pleasing innings of 46 against Gauteng in a three-day match.

He played a one-day match against the Australian Cricket Academy, scoring only a few runs but impressing coach Rodney Marsh with his attitude. Marsh later commented that Dion exhibited the correct mental make-up for a top player. At the academy he spent a great deal of his free time, along with some of his colleagues, developing his skills at the facilities available there and working on his game. He pays tribute to some of the senior academy students, such as Everton Matambanadzo, Dirk Viljoen and Gary Brent, for their willingness to pass on their knowledge to him. He did not only improved technically, but learned to develop a professional attitude towards the game.

Dion's family had moved up to Harare in 1992, and so he first joined Universals Cricket Club during the school holidays of the 1997/98 season. In his first match, for the second team, he scored a fifty and was promoted immediately to the first team. Cricket chairman Max Ebrahim was so impressed that he promised Dion that as soon as he finished school he would have a place in the first team for him. Max kept that promise, and actually took the initiative, contacting Dion when he left school and offering him a place as a wicket-keeper initially. Dion for his part pays tribute to Max for all the time, advice and extra practice opportunities he has given him, and has never considered moving to any other club. Dion's best performance for Universals was an unbeaten century against MacDonald Club of Bulawayo, and he has recently scored 86 against Manicaland, amid a run of other good scores.

Max Ebrahim describes how Dion blossomed after only a couple of games for them, and senior player Ali Shah took him under his wing. "He is willing to learn all the time and should make it to the top in two years or so," he says. "He is a hard worker and an asset to any team."

Dion did struggle to start with at the Academy, largely through technical problems, according to Gwynne Jones, but he worked hard to overcome these. He returned from his season in England a much improved and more confident player, as his results soon showed, for both the Board XI and Universals. He still has one or two rough edges to be ironed out, but he is working and training hard to do so. For his part Dion felt disappointed at batting rather low in the order for the academy teams as he tends to be a slow starter to an innings, needing time to adjust to the pace of the pitch, and he would often come in to bat with only five or six overs left to the innings.

Nevertheless Dion felt that it has been due to his experiences at the academy that he is enjoying such a good run in league cricket at present. He bats high in the order for Universals, in the number three position that he prefers, giving him time to build an innings.

He has been contracted to return to Matabeleland as a player and coach for the year, and spend the off season playing and coaching in England again. He still has relatives down there, but he expects to share accommodation provided for the ex-academy players in Bulawayo. He aims during the year to consolidate his place in the Board XI team and hopefully to get closer to the next step, international cricket.

As a batsman Dion is a wristy player, stronger on the leg side, with an unorthodox grip in that his left hand is held further round the bat handle than is usual. He is actively working on his mental strength to compete at the top level, and developing his off-side strokes as well. He recently opened the bowling for Universals against Alexandra Sports Club and took four wickets, swinging the ball well, and then added a fifty to this, so he could possibly develop into a genuine all-rounder.

It is perhaps as a fielder, mainly in the backward point area, that Dion excels most at present, though. He is already one of the quickest and most brilliant fielders in the country, and Max Ebrahim describes his fielding there as 'unbelievable'.

Dion enjoys other sports, but also has a particular interest in computers and the internet, and in stamp-collecting. He also enjoys physical training and keeping himself fit in the gym. He is an engaging and popular personality, known as a 'good lad' and is full of gratitude to his family, club and academy for all they have done to make his career possible.