Zimbabwe flatter to deceive

Darlington Majonga



WE laugh for different reasons.

Every millisecond someone somewhere is doing that – showing emotion through an explosive, often spontaneous, vocal sound.

Pakistan did a lot of that on their way to a seven-wicket win over Zimbabwe in their one-off Test match in Bulawayo this week.

Every time Zimbabwe gave away a wicket – and it happened in horrendous fashion in a forgettable second innings – howls, similar to those made by a pack of jackals, filled the rather empty Queens Sports Club.

Maybe that’s how they express impulsive delight in Pakistan, but their piercing cackling said it all about Zimbabwe’s sorry collapse.

As much as the home side’s capitulation was somewhat laughable, it was far from a laughing matter.

In all honesty, their disintegration came as surprise considering how they had amassed a respectable first-innings total of 412, anchored by Tinotenda Mawoyo’s unbeaten 163.

Yet it wasn’t something totally unexpected for a small cricket nation that has flattered to deceive since their first ever Test victory, ironically against Pakistan, by an innings and 64 runs in February 1995.

That historic match had Grant Flower unbeaten on 201 and his brother Andy being caught by Wasim Akram, now coach of Pakistan, off the bowling of Kabir Khan after stroking a massive 153.

Guy Whittall was unbeaten on 103 when Zimbabwe declared their first innings on 544-4.

That proved to be a match-winning total as Pakistan were wiped out for 322 and still could not make up for the deficit when they followed on, only managing a paltry 158.

Heath Streak, then a fresh-faced 20-year-old boy, did most of the damage, hauling six wickets in the first innings for 90 before following that up with 3-15.

No one can dispute that that Zimbabwe side had real talent, with Dave Houghton, Alistair Campbell, Stuart Carlisle, Paul Strang and Henry Olonga in the mix.

The Pakistani side that capitulated at Harare Sports Club in that historic Test match was quite strong too, unlike the “weakened” team which beat Zimbabwe this week.

That goes a long way to confirm what has for long been a public secret: that Zimbabwe doesn’t really have the quality to compete at the highest level.

Maybe I should say they do not have quality yet, because if it’s about potential, yes, Zimbabwe has quite a lot of it.

Many analysts have been decrying a lack of experience in the current Zimbabwe side.

As the match at Queens wore on with Pakistan replying in their first innings, the home side frittered away seven regulation catches that could have turned the duel in their favour.

One commentator said Zimbabwe were not yet used to the intensity of Test cricket.

Yet, in simple words, there was no excuse for such sloppiness.

And this has been and will continue to be Zimbabwe’s Achilles’ heel. It’s a trend that they have failed to overcome, even since the heady days of the Flower brothers.

Flash back to March 20, 2001.

Zimbabwe were on the verge of another historic win, needing just 99 runs to defeat the West Indies at Trinidad’s Queens Park Oval.

The Flower brothers were in the line-up. And so were the much-touted Neil Johnson and Murray Goodwin.

But against all expectations, even for Test cricket’s newest and weakest nation, Zimbabwe folded in spectacular fashion and by the time Curtly Ambrose sent last wicket Mpumelelo Mbangwa’s furniture flying they had only managed 63.

Besides Grant’s 126-ball 26, no other Zimbabwean went into the double figures that day and no one else beat the nine extras donated by the Windies.

Andy’s first-innings century went in vain, like what has just happened to Mawoyo’s mammoth knock.

Inexperience, a wearing pitch and poor batting were proffered as the reasons for the unbelievable capitulation.

We can offer the same reasons for Zimbabwe’s loss to Pakistan this week.

Zimbabwe’s first ever Test win was as significant as victory over the same Pakistan this week would have been.

In 1995, with questions being asked whether or not they had been admitted into Test cricket prematurely, it was important for Zimbabwe to prove they merited a spot in the game’s elite league.

That’s the same scenario Zimbabwe have found themselves in after six years away from Test cricket.

The celebrations that followed Zimbabwe’s 130-run victory over Bangladesh on their return to Test cricket last month were understandable.

But no one can say they expected the result to be very different.

Despite Zimbabwe’s exile, there has never been really anything to separate the two sides since Streak and 13 other players, with 257 Test caps between them, walked out on national duty on April 15, 2004.

You can look at their drawn match at Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka in January 2005 when Bangladesh were expected to overrun Zimbabwe’s greenhorns who had been thrown into the deep end following the senior player rebellion.

The litmus test for Zimbabwe was expected to come in the form of Pakistan, never mind they had the luxury to leave their premier pace bowlers, Umar Gul, Tanvir Ahmed and Wahab Riaz, back home.

The inclusion of relatively inexperienced players, including the uncapped Aizaz Cheema who went on to cause serious damage, was supposed to give Zimbabwe an equal chance.

But that was not to be.

Yet it wasn’t a victory given on a silver platter. Zimbabwe, to their credit, took the match, for the second consecutive time, to the fifth day.

They had failed to do so in innings defeats against Sri Lanka, South Africa and New Zealand – heavy defeats which forced Zimbabwe to take a break from Test cricket.

Solid batting, in both innings, is critical in Test cricket. So is consistently disciplined bowling and fielding.

So far, against both Bangladesh and Pakistan, Zimbabwe have shown they are capable of doing that.

But that will not happen as long as they do not quickly shift their mindset. They have to believe that they can beat or at least compete against the best.

They have the potential, which in simple terms refers to latent but unrealised ability.

Besides Brendan Taylor, Tatenda Taibu and Hamilton Masakadza, players such as Mawoyo, Brian Vitori and Kyle Jarvis can now also steal the headlines.

That’s what makes a team, not individuals.

While we can talk about Zimbabwe’s potential, it cannot be denied that they are still far from becoming a quality side that can compete against Test cricket’s big guns – not that they were under any illusions about that, I suppose.

What Zimbabwe need for now to become polished gems is to strike consistency in performance.

This means if they can score 412 in the first innings they should be able to do as much in the second. And if they can be brilliant fielders in one match, they shouldn’t be dropping easy catches in the next as if they are paid to do that.

The upcoming ODI series against Pakistan will be crucial for Zimbabwe to regain the momentum they had gained against Bangladesh and to convince the cricketing world that their self-imposed exile wasn’t all in vain.

And the players themselves must understand more than anyone else that they can only be taken seriously by winning and being competitive.

• Darlington Majonga is the editor of the Free State Times in South Africa.