Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

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Pat_Bee
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by Pat_Bee »

jontym87 wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:25 pm
‘Zimbabwe Emerging’, really? Just who are we deceiving?


Where are all those gifted boys who have starred for Zimbabwe at the last three Under-19 World Cups? Some teams in the English County Championship Division Two have gladly benefitted from the investment of Zimbabwe, their national body the ECB even looking at the possibility of ancestral connections to cap the best of the ex-Zimbabwean youngsters.

The long and short seems to be the Poms poached the decent kids and left our cupboard bare.

jontym87
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by jontym87 »

TapsC2 wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:36 pm
jontym87 wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:25 pm
‘Zimbabwe Emerging’, really? Just who are we deceiving?


A ZIMBABWEAN cricket team, calling itself “Zimbabwe Emerging”, is currently on tour in South Africa, captained by somebody who has played firstclass cricket in the country for 14 years.

Roy Kaia, the 31-year-old skipper of the Zimbabwean outfit, is one of seven players in the touring party who have played Test cricket for their country – the world game’s premier format.

An eighth Test player, 28-year-old all-rounder Luke Jongwe, was also in the original 15-man squad but sadly lost his father on the eve of the tour.

Not to mention a combined multiple caps around the squad in international white-ball cricket.

How incredible is that! Is this because of desperation for results by those in the corridors of power, or there is genuine dearth of real emerging talent in the country? Certainly it is not the latter.

Our selection process must protect the integrity of our teams by picking the right players for each and every representative side. We should not
deceive ourselves by sending seasoned players to play bona fide upcoming players of other countries.

Where are all those gifted boys who have starred for Zimbabwe at the last three Under-19 World Cups? Some teams in the English County Championship Division Two have gladly benefitted from the investment of Zimbabwe, their national body the ECB even looking at the possibility of ancestral connections to cap the best of the ex-Zimbabwean youngsters.

But we cannot be counting our losses forever. Plenty of young talent still remains in Zimbabwe.

Scientifically, sending this largely experienced side on that kind of development tour has effects in the long run.

(1) It is Misrepresentation: It is misleading and undermines the concept of an emerging squad. The purpose of an emerging squad is to provide exposure and opportunities to young and relatively inexperienced players who are on the cusp of breaking into the international arena. By including established players, the squad loses its intended focus and dilutes the developmental opportunities for genuine emerging talents.

(2) Limited Developmental Opportunities: By sending experienced players, Zimbabwe is denying genuinely emerging players the chance to gain valuable match experience and hone their skills against their peers, from whom they will learn a lot because of the high level of cricket they are exposed to in South Africa, a world power. This lack of exposure can stunt the growth and progress of young talents who need these opportunities to develop their game, adapt to different situations, and build confidence.

(3) Stifling Long-term Growth: One of the primary objectives of fielding an emerging squad is to identify and nurture potential future stars who can contribute to the senior national team. By filling the squad with players who have already played international and firstclass cricket for several years, the focus shifts away from identifying and grooming new talents. This shortsighted approach undermines the long-term player development strategy that is essential for a Test nation's sustained success.

(4) Lost Chance for Talent Identification: Emerging player tours serve as an avenue for selectors and coaches to scout and assess fresh talents. If the squad is dominated by experienced players, there is a missed opportunity to unearth hidden gems and promising prospects who could be the backbone of Zimbabwe's cricket future.

(5) Ineffective Use of Resources: Fielding an emerging squad should ideally involve investing resources, time, and effort in nurturing young players who are in the early stages of their careers. Sending experienced players in an emerging squad misallocates resources and does not align with the intended purpose of fostering future talent.

(6) Mismatched Skill Levels: The inclusion of experienced players in an emerging squad can lead to a mismatch in skill levels during matches. Facing established international and first-class players might not challenge the emerging players as much as needed to promote growth and improvement.

(7) Impact on Team Cohesion: Including experienced players in an emerging squad might disrupt team dynamics and cohesion. The mixed skill levels and levels of experience could hinder effective teamwork and communication, which are essential for player development

Zimbabwe's decision to send an “emerging squad” primarily composed of experienced players contradicts the very essence of nurturing and developing emerging talents. It's a shortsighted approach that undermines the long-term goals of building a strong player base and future stars for the nation's cricket team. A more prudent strategy would involve focusing on genuinely emerging players and providing them with the opportunities and exposure they need to thrive and contribute meaningfully to the nation's cricketing legacy.
I'm just curious to know what your ideal 15 man "emerging" squad would have looked like. Available players
Emerging would have been 18-24 year olds with no more that 5 caps at First class level. Preferably bulk of the youngsters who were in the last U19 WC squad who arent yet established at First Class level. Fuse them with current/prospective U19 squad players.
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secretzimbo
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by secretzimbo »

Hilarious really. You’ve managed to spend several hours of your life writing some incoherent diatribe about a subject and yet you have managed to offer absolutely zero alternative players.

The other idiot on the other thread ignored me at least 4 times so I’ll try with you too:

Who missed out on this squad but deserved to be in there?

People seem to think we have dozens of amazing young cricketers in our system. We don’t.

Nobody who is:
1) Available
2) Good enough to compete against these SA guys

….missed out on this squad.

Name them. And they have to meet both of those criteria.



You’re a bitter man Jonty and it’s obvious that you’ve struggled greatly to witness some good things happening in ZC. You won’t be happy until Hamilton is fired and that’s it. You are silent every time something good happens but pop up every time there’s the slightest chance to have a dig.

I for one honestly don’t give one flying shit about your personal vendetta about a guy who lives 8,000km from you and I’d suggest finding something better to do with your time than writing really quite poor articles.

secretzimbo
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by secretzimbo »

"Current and prospective u19 players" would lose each of these matches by a good 300+ runs and if you think otherwise you're even more clueless about cricket than I thought.

jontym87
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by jontym87 »

Pat_Bee wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 5:00 pm
jontym87 wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:25 pm
‘Zimbabwe Emerging’, really? Just who are we deceiving?


Where are all those gifted boys who have starred for Zimbabwe at the last three Under-19 World Cups? Some teams in the English County Championship Division Two have gladly benefitted from the investment of Zimbabwe, their national body the ECB even looking at the possibility of ancestral connections to cap the best of the ex-Zimbabwean youngsters.

The long and short seems to be the Poms poached the decent kids and left our cupboard bare.
Can you fault them? NO. We dont know how to utilise talent/resources as a country not just in cricket alone. I am sorry to bring race into this but as blacks we are our own worst enemies. Very disappointing. Like they say if the politics is not right nothing works.
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jontym87
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by jontym87 »

secretzimbo wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 5:06 pm
"Current and prospective u19 players" would lose each of these matches by a good 300+ runs and if you think otherwise you're even more clueless about cricket than I thought.
Then thats a reality check and we know where we are and built from there. Now you have old madalas with international experience over 100 international caps amongst them still losing to uncapped south africans what does that say about ZC as an organisation.
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jontym87
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by jontym87 »

secretzimbo wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 5:05 pm
Hilarious really. You’ve managed to spend several hours of your life writing some incoherent diatribe about a subject and yet you have managed to offer absolutely zero alternative players.

The other idiot on the other thread ignored me at least 4 times so I’ll try with you too:

Who missed out on this squad but deserved to be in there?

People seem to think we have dozens of amazing young cricketers in our system. We don’t.

Nobody who is:
1) Available
2) Good enough to compete against these SA guys

….missed out on this squad.

Name them. And they have to meet both of those criteria.



You’re a bitter man Jonty and it’s obvious that you’ve struggled greatly to witness some good things happening in ZC. You won’t be happy until Hamilton is fired and that’s it. You are silent every time something good happens but pop up every time there’s the slightest chance to have a dig.

I for one honestly don’t give one flying shit about your personal vendetta about a guy who lives 8,000km from you and I’d suggest finding something better to do with your time than writing really quite poor articles.
Not happy when something good happens? Whats good coming out of ZC? Getting the likes of Chris Mpofu back to playing? Trying to get Elton and Prosper to play during the T10? you joking.

OK if i put it to you whats 'emerging talent' is in that squad that went to South Africa? During the T10 we saw that Maposa guy doing well and there are a few other players who were trialed for the T10. There are other guys playing the NPL and doing well need to expose that talent.
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secretzimbo
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by secretzimbo »

Maposa is literally in the squad and played the other day you complete and utter retard.

Pat_Bee
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by Pat_Bee »

Ya, actual names of guys who have been robbed of an opportunity on this tour would be quality journalism to be fair. Providing evidence to the argument.

I post complete rubbish and accept that, I don’t try and dress it up as anything else though.

The most concerning thing for me about this tour is Roy’s motley crew of capped professionals are being schooled by South African kids.

Being generous; we’ll lose this series 3-2. A whopping six people will call the performance dog excrement online, the squad will go to Kadza’s for tea and medals celebrating a job well done in being competitive and we’ll move on to the next series backing our boys to the hilt and post the same 600 pages of nonsense. Club cricket vibes with a professional wage is the ZC machine really.

jontym87
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Re: Zimbabwe’s ‘Emerging’ Squad Mirage: Experienced Players Eclipse Future Stars, Stalling Cricket’s Progress

Post by jontym87 »

secretzimbo wrote:
Sun Aug 20, 2023 5:17 pm
Maposa is literally in the squad and played the other day you complete and utter retard.
The only retard here is you. Was he in the initial squad announced? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: See when you dont have facts you resort to insults.
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