Chibhabha explains youthful squad
ZIMBABWE Cricket (ZC) Women convener of selectors Julia Chibhabha has explained their decision to pick a youthful Lady Chevrons squad that is set to travel to Namibia for the Capricorn Eagles Tri-Series that gets underway today.
The 15-member Lady Chevrons team was tasked with competing against Namibia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the Tri-Series is dominated by several Under-19 players while seasoned campaigners such as Sharne Mayers, Mary-Anne Musonda, and Nomvelo Sibanda missed out on selection.
ZC included nine Under-19 players, a decision that Chibhabha has explained.
Chibhabha said they are looking at giving the youngsters preparation for their World Cup Qualifiers.
Zimbabwe Women Under-19s are set to compete at the ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Division One Qualifier to be played later this month.
Chibhabha added that the six senior players were deliberately picked to mentor the youngsters.
“Selection was based on two factors; continuing to build on preparations for the Under-19s and mentorship. It was ideally to equip the Under-19 players for the qualifier and the World Cup. The six senior players were deliberately chosen to mentor on batting, bowling, general mannerisms, and confidence building.
“A player like Mugeri-Tiripano has a huge presence on the field and we are hoping the youngsters will feed off her and learn a lot. Mugeri-Tiripano and Mupachikwa were chosen to help the batters, especially the top-order batters, while our top bowler Nkomo will mentor the bowlers, with Dhururu and Mupachikwa mentoring the wicket-keepers,” said Chibhabha in a statement from ZC.
Four of the Under-19s — Kelis Ndhlovu, Beloved Biza, Kudzai Chigora, and Christina Mutasa — have already played for the senior team, while Runyararo Pasipanodya, Passionate Munorwei, Chipo
Moyo and Lorraine Pemhiwa received their maiden call-ups.
Another debutant in the senior side is United Kingdom-based Tawananyasha Marumani, who represented Zimbabwe Women at the ICC Women’s Under-19 T20 World Cup 2023.
Except for Marumani, the starlets were all part of the Zimbabwe A Women’s team that won silver at the Kwibuka Women’s T20 tournament in Rwanda earlier this year.
In the absence of Musonda, Chiedza Dhururu was made the skipper. Chibhabha said they made Dhururu the captain because she led the Zimbabwe A team in Rwanda during the Kwibuka Women’s T20I tournament and worked well with the youngsters.
“Dhururu will captain just as she did at Kwibuka because she was able to help the Under-19s go through the tournament and helped build their confidence,” she said.
The squad also saw the return of Loryn Phiri, who was in the ICC Women’s T20I Team of the Year for 2021 but has not been picked for the senior team in the past year.
“She (Phiri) has been on the fringes for a while, but was part of the Kwibuka squad and did well. She is being rewarded for great performances, working hard with both bat and ball,” said Chibhabha.
Zimbabwe will play their first match of the series against UAE on Saturday before going on to face the hosts, Namibia on the following day.
They will then go on to face UAE again on September 10 and the hosts on the following day. Their last two pool matches are lined up for September 13 and 14 against UAE and Namibia respectively.
All matches start at 2pm and will be played at Wanderers Cricket Ground in the Namibian capital of Windhoek.
Squad for Namibia Tri-Series: Chiedza Dhururu, Josephine Nkomo, Kelis Ndhlovu, Beloved Biza, Modester Mupachikwa, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Loryn Phiri, Christine Mutasa, Runyararo Pasipanodya, Passionate Munorwei, Tawananyasha Marumani, Kudzai Chigora, Lindokuhle Mabhero, Chipo Moyo, Lorraine Pemhiwa.