[Match Thread] Zim XI v Australia A

[takleg]

C'MON Chakabva and Ervine, rotate the strike! Rudolph and Kuhn did well yesterday by only taking one's and two's.

[hhm]

Let me be the first to lift up my hand and acknowledge just how off the mark my predictions were. We have not had the better of Aus; SA have not brutally brushed us aside; and most importantly, Aus have not been on the receiving of both these teams. In fact, they have been dominant. Prevailing with bonus points on each occasion! On that premise I decided to wait patiently and observantly to see the developments unfold, before I gave myself another opportunity to eat my words. And I must say, the revelations have been telling! The seemingly steady 'demise' of Australian cricket had led many, including the Australians themselves, into believing that they should in the meantime become used to being merely an above-average test nation, and lulled them into a review on the quality of their domestic game. Even Mickey Arthur(present coach of Western Australia), taking advantage of SA's rise in stark contrast to Aus' downturn of fortunes, rubbished the standard of Aus' First Class cricket. To the point of shedding the experienced players in his state side, claiming they are too relaxed/comfortable to continue to perform to the standards required to 'resurrect' Aus cricket. How they eased past the SA side, disproves that fact, and clearly shows that the Aus administrators are best served by utilising their resources elsewhere as they really have nothing to fear. On the other hand, SA's bench strength has been woefully exposed once again. The nation that actually needs to be shedding dead wood (Bosman, Ontong...) is SA. True, both these teams are pretty much their respective nations' second string A sides, so the argument can be made that SA can select a better side which would be superior. But dare I say, no other full member, Ind&Eng included, would be willing to subject their A side to a four day game against this particular four day side Aus have selected to tour us, simply because the inevitable defeat would highlight the gulf between Aus' next generation and theirs. Come to think of it, in comparison to the other two teams, it is now difficult for me to identify what SA have achieved in this series as they haven't really given their next batch of youngsters an opportunity to perform.

ZIM V SA (FIRST GAME)
We came agonisingly close to clinching a well-deserved victory and in the end we were just a run short. And as if to say we do not have the 'balls' required to finish the job at this level, we were deprived one ball which could have made the difference! Both captains showed, in part, what it means to lead from the front. Sensing blood in Price's underwhelming displays, and Cremer's absence through injury, Utseya sought to remind us that can both strike and keep things under check - literally shouting into the ZCF's face that he's the spinner to lead us out into our first test. Not wanting his credentials as an opening bowler to be questioned any further, Meth was also equally decisive in his message - any heroics that Jarvis & Chatara might perform in the two-day game will not be rewarded at his expense. Our young captain can learn from the predatory instincts of the game's greatest captains. With Chigumbura surprisingly economical, he needn't have made use of himself and Hamilton. The five bowlers were sufficient to ensure that in the end the total to chase was not beyond 200. I was of the view that it was prompted by injury/or an attempt to manage Elton's bowling duties, but his appearance in today's game belies that assumption. So the two runs which you gave up on the verge of your century, plus this bad decision, cost your team victory and yourself the man-of-the-match award. Regis flattered to deceive. Despite Grant & Butcher’s efforts, Craig seems to prefer taking extra batting advice from his brother, while Price appears content to continue to propping up the bowling charts.

ZIM V AUSTRALIA (SECOND GAME)
Bad performance all-round. But in case his message to us was loud enough the last time, Utseya made certain of it this time around as he almost singlehandedly turned the match on its head. Unlike the Australians who had intense 3 week training in preparation; on the eve of Test resumption, are our boys exhausted from playing catch with each other over the same period? No anticipated changes were made for this game, so all significant focus was really on two players: Price and Ervine. The scene was set for their arrival. Neither turned up! 'It could be he spent too long a time opening the bowling in India that he has somehow forgotten how to bowl without the new ball', they might have thought about Price. Perhaps therein lies the solution (but if so what about test cricket?). He did stem the flow of runs in this game though. On the other hand, the two players under my withering radar were able to produce a decent partnership. Regis went on to make a spirited team high of 45, while Elton softly made his way back to his warm seat, after a far from convincing knock, but not before attempting to pamper the cracks with a six as Ervine did before him. Mutizwa was rightfully given ample opportunity to prove that his domestic exploits can be replicated at international level. On the back of having matured in age and as a player, plus the added hunger of the pain of being consistently overlooked, he has completely abdicated his right to any grievance, and lessened the selectors' headaches.

The early onslaught of the Aussies once again provided a test for Taylor’s captaincy. Instead of placing faith in his bowlers to see how they would react under similar pressure in future, he promptly shifted to spin after just 6 overs of seam. I suppose you could also look at it as, he was wise enough to discount only changing Elton for Meth, opting rather to completely switch to spin from both ends to avoid rankling him. Out of 169 balls at a strike-rate of just over 50, Chakabva has only been able to produce just 4 boundaries and not a single maximum. Despite being our second highest scorer so far, I cannot fathom his continued selection ahead of Taibu. For this, I would have to inadequately employ bayhaus' conspiracy theory powers viewtopic.php?p=26705#p26705: Taibu, despite Taylor's up rise & Masakdza's century on debut, is undoubtedly our most recognised batsmen internationally so they must have left him out in order to create room for an excuse that they didn't field their full strength side and say they wanted to give a chance to others like Regis&Mutizwa, while Williams was allowed to go on an extended holiday (in response to obvious questioning about his quitting: we gave the impression that he left under a cloud of having quitted for fear of upsetting the other less esteemed seniors of the team who were not granted that privilege).

Now to the next game and how the rest will unfold…
Well, I simply refuse to learn from my lesson. There must be some redeeming value to the SA side, so I think Aus can expect revenge to be exacted. For the benefit of making the obvious more apparent, in our case I hope bar Waller for Mutizwa, no further changes are made. That should, I'm sad to say, grant an opportunity for Chakabva & Chigumbura to collect golden ducks, with Elton giving away 30 runs in a solitary & wicketless 3 over spell. Sometimes chance is needed to knock some sense into things. His captain doesn’t seem to trust him with 10 overs, he’s neither making nor taking wickets so he should make way for either a proper bowler or proper batsman.

Looking at the way the games have gone, I was in part about to heap blame on our pitches, but recently the trend of low scoring games in most series in the early part of the international cricket calendar suggests that I would be hard-pressed to justify that point. It appears the rise of Twenty20 cricket has done little to distort the 'real' game. The powers that be continue to heap advantages to the batsmen and diminish the impact of bowlers, but as this series has clearly shown, ultimately it's bowlers who win you matches. It is for this reason then that we should be most glad because, if anything, the goal of ensuring that we have set seamers for Test cricket is promising. (In that light, if Rampaul has risen from the dead in such a manner, the likes of Mawhire really have cause for inspiration)

[bayhaus]

...the likes of Mawhire really have cause for inspiration)

Phew, dude I think you need to set up a blog for your detailed analysis, I think they are being lost to the cricketing community at large as responses in a forum (No disrespect to ZCF). I would gladly follow your blog!

[eugene]

The strength of this Australia A side clearly lies in its bowling attack. Zimbabwe could only dream of having players like John Hastings and Mitchell Starc spearheading its attack. The South Africa A team, as hhm pointed out does have a few odd selections. Justin Ontong and Loots Bosman have always been crap, the SA selectors surely didnt need yet another chance to see this for themselves? Jacques Rudolph is all class, but he should surely be playing for the full side - not the A team. The so called demise of Australian cricket has been greatly exaggerated I feel. Although their selectors make some odd choices too such as dropping their best batsmen over the last year - Simon Katich.

[Boundary]

...the likes of Mawhire really have cause for inspiration)

Phew, dude I think you need to set up a blog for your detailed analysis, I think they are being lost to the cricketing community at large as responses in a forum (No disrespect to ZCF). I would gladly follow your blog!

Hey, we need to keep him here - ZCF needs all the talent Zim has to offer. That's how we can affect the thinking of key decision makers

[maehara]

Well, if anyone has any genuine opinion pieces they want to get out there, there's always ZCN. Anyone interested can PM me - I'm quite happy for it to be used as a sounding board.

[ZIMDOGGY]

Im not a man of many words but i have a thought of my own that have been stirring and accellerated as ive followed the games on Cricinfo.

Mpofu=

I wanted to wait till after the series before making this post but the first few games have only confirmed a belief i have had.
And that is i think he is an underrated bowler that doesnt get due credit and none moreso than those that lurk at ZCF.

We always talk about Chatara,Shingi, Jarvis,Panyangara and now Vitori - but we have overlooked the status quo and why it is what it is.

Chatara, Shingi and jarvis are exciting prospects but are way too young. Panyangaras just plain awful in my opinion and Vitori is still a work in progress. This time last year Vitori was not considered much, but has improved over the last Logan season leading the worst attack in the Logan cup. I believe he is on the up but at this time is still too soft and will be ineffective.

But mpofu, while he may not be world class, may be built like a cricket bat handle and may have the most awkward run up (that resembles a huntsman spider crawling up a wall)....things which i think turns people off him...... hes been pretty good the last year or so.

His pace is decent (130-35km) he consistently takes wickets at the back end of the innings and has generally keeps things tight early on (with some exceptions).

I would go as far as to say hes been the best paceman we have had besides streak and Brandes.
And you know what? In times like this - Beggars cant be choosers....

Id love to see his Cricinfo stats record over the last year or so. I would analyse them and post them here to prove my point. But if truth be told, i am lazy and cant be bothered.

What i do know is...

We need more MPOFU love.

[eugene]

Mpofu is definately underrated on this forum - I have been saying this for quite some time.
Mpofu rarely lets us down and is actually somewhat reliable - unlike Shingi "8-an-over" Masakadza.
It is pretty clear that Kyle Jarvis is going to become the greatest Zimbabwean pace bowler of all-time but while he is developing I think we should go with Mpofu.

[ZIMDOGGY]

Jemisi I think it's more of a case that mpofus everyones second or third choice here.

if I asked 3G forumers who I want as my top 2 in attack I bet they will say something along the lines of "Chitara!! He's so quick and young and will take wickets!!! oh.... Mpofu can be the second."

Rinse and repeat with rainsford or Jarvis.

If Jarvis and chitara were the same person mpofu wouldn't have made that team. What I mean by that is they both represent the same style of attack buy because there's 2 of them the votes are split, if that makes sense.

[hhm]

Phew, dude I think you need to set up a blog for your detailed analysis, I think they are being lost to the cricketing community at large as responses in a forum (No disrespect to ZCF). I would gladly follow your blog!

Hey, we need to keep him here - ZCF needs all the talent Zim has to offer. That's how we can affect the thinking of key decision makers

Well, if anyone has any genuine opinion pieces they want to get out there, there's always ZCN. Anyone interested can PM me - I'm quite happy for it to be used as a sounding board.

Thanks guys. I'm just rambling. Pardon me if it racks anyone up. In any case, I like the ZCF for this sort of thing. It's a very interesting & 'unique' place. No genuine opinion peice yet, but I'm sure most of the guys here will make use of that suggestion maehara. We appreciate the invitation.

Welcome back Zimdoggy. That explains your MIA. I was about to summon Maweni to go look for you. But then again, perhaps Vusi should've been my starting point. No doubt he would have had something to do with it.

For a person of his background, I'm certaian he has that extra incentive to perform, but bear in mind that Mpofu is a product of channelled and consistent effort on the part of the coaches. The currrent Mpofu is a stark contrast to the one we were introduced to. Of the present crop, I doubt any other bowler has received similar attention, and that's very much a sign that with time we can turn truly these youngsters into world class bowlers. I, like most here have been unwavering in my choice of him, THEN somebody else Rainsford, Panyangara etc. Unfortunately you don't regard Panyangara, but anyway Mpofu is leading the way. I reserve my judgement on Vitori&Chatara until I have had sufficient exposure to them. It wouldn't be the first time that one of our seamers has had an outstanding series (e.g Rainsford) but failed to kickon. The key is not to regress. That is the challenge for Mpofu, and indeed everyone of our cricketers. Taylor, Hamilton, Elton, Ervine, Taibu, you name them, have all had 'purple patches' but never really sustained them. Time will tell.