Interview with H. Masakadza

[CrimsonAvenger]

http://www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz/news/ma ... c/1252769/

NINE children in a family can be a test by any stretch of the imagination.

"It was quite interesting at the dinner table, that I can tell you," says grinning cricketer Hamilton Masakadza, who hails from the second oldest black settlement in Harare, the "high-density" township of Highfield, a euphemism for the underprivileged and overpopulated.

Perhaps nothing captures that dinner-table mood better than the lyrics from No Woman No Cry, the reggae hit from the legendary late Bob Marley.

"Then we would cook cornmeal porridge; Of which I'll share with you," team manager Lovemore Banda explains, adding a typical family would use the thick cornflour paste (called sadza) as a staple starch base for eating myriad meat and vegetables.

The 28-year-old Zimbabwe cricket international, who now lives in a "low-density" flat in the capital city with his wife, Vimbai, is playing in the one-off test match against the Black Caps at McLean Park, Napier, which is into the third day today.

"We were in the middle. We weren't too bad off and not too well off, either," says the third youngest sibling whose father, Kingstone Panashe, is now a car dealer and mother, Ruth Masakadza, a retired credit insurance employee.

His brother, Shingirai, 24, is also part of the touring cricket squad, making his test debut when the five-day match started here on Thursday with the prized wicket of Martin Guptill. He earned the respect of New Zealand captain Ross Taylor as the pick of the bowlers.

Ironically it was the elder Masakadza who was the most frugal after day one as an occasional right-hand medium pacer who claimed Dean Brownlie's wicket for a duck.

Shingirai, a defender in the biggest soccer team in Zimbabwe, was only playing social cricket when he caught the eye of national assistant coach Stephen Mangongo who enticed him away from football.

"Cricket is only the second main sport at home to football but it's becoming bigger now," Hamilton Masakadza says, also reaping the benefits of belonging to a development programme that Zimbabwe assistant coach Mangongo runs with team convenor Givemore Makoni at a club called, Takashinga, which translates from the indigenous Shona dialect to "we are determined".

"He's the guy who showed me what a cricket bat looks like and he also taught me how to pick it up from the word go," he says of Mangongo who heads the programme in Highfield as part of a Zimbabwe Cricket initiative to introduce the sport to the black community. Before independence, it was a code for only the white population.

He fondly recalls picking the willow up for the first time at the age of 12.

"I liked it from the first day. It was different and I hadn't seen anything like it before so I took to it straight away," he says, adding he was keen on bowling, too.

Masakadza did have a go at soccer at school, considering majority of his peers were into the beautiful game, too.

"I was nowhere near as talented enough to compete with those other guys," he says with a sheepish smile.

His family became a pillar of strength and support when they found out his potential in cricket could lead to a career.

"They were only worried once when I got hit in the eye when I wasn't wearing a helmet. It got so swollen up, the eye just closed up," he says. His helmet-wearing perch at silly mid-on suggests he is habitually in protection mode now.

"Even though cricket is quite difficult and expensive my parents were very supportive so I wouldn't have got anywhere without them."

Still at Churchill High School, Masakadza found himself padding up for a match-saving debut international against the West Indies in the second test of a home series at the age of 17 years 254 days, a record which Bangladesh's Mohammad Ashraful has eclipsed since as the youngest player ever to score a test ton.

His call up came after Grant Flower was injured in the first test.

"It was very big thing for me and quite encouraging because I was still in school and quite unsure of myself so it was really good enough for me at the top level," Masakadza says.

That also later turned out to be an important indicator as a career path choice for someone who was at the crossroads of life, contemplating juggling a life of professional sports and tertiary education.

He went into the record books again against the West Indies in December 2007, this time in an ODI. His opening partnership of 167 with Vusi Sibanda was the best in his land, with Masakadza making 80.

The right-hand opener's maiden ODI ton against a test nation came in August 2009, eight years after his test century, when he scored 102 off 112 balls against Bangladesh batting at No 3, after almost six years in cricket exile because of the political turmoil in the country.

The impasse that saw 14 players leave did affect him, considering he looked up to elite players such as Flower, Alistair Campbell and former captain Heath Streak.

Into his eighth year of cricket, Masakadza was thoroughly enjoying his foray into a sport that requires lengthy spells at a time on sweltering days.

"I hope to continue playing for my country as long as I can," says the man who became the first black player to score a first-class century in February 2000.

He says many black players were talented before him although they didn't push on to make tons before him.

Masakadza is also the first Zimbabwean to have two ODI scores of more than 150, both coming in one week when he scored 156 and 178 not out against Kenya in October 2009 in the first and fifth matches in Harare.

Having a marketing degree, Masakadza hopes to ply his trade in something involving sports but he wasn't in a rush considering he has several years up his sleeve.

"I enjoy all my sports - rugby, soccer, cricket - so it'll be a good avenue to give something back to sport with maybe a little bit of coaching," he says.

Married with no children, Masakadza smiles when asked if it is a good position to be should Zimbabwe start playing abroad more.

"I think it's time now [to have children], to be honest. We've been married for more than a year and a half now so it's a good time to regenerate," he says.

Test cricket is the yardstick for success, he says, feeling Zimbabwe need to play more five-day matches.

"It's the purest form of the game and the biggest challenge so that's why they call it test cricket.

"You can't improve playing by just playing one-day cricket," he says, not impartial to scoring a lucrative IPL contract some day.

"I have quite a good twenty/20 record and I enjoy playing it, too, so that's also one more thing on the card."

His advice to youngsters wanting to aspire to top level sport is to enjoy it first and foremost.

"Everything else will just follow that enjoyment," Masakadza says before getting on the bus.

[CrimsonAvenger]

It is all nice to read these overseas interviews, but Hamilton would be under serious pressure following a dreadful run of form and the pair in the test match. Matsi could very well be breathing down his neck. Although, I have always felt thaat Hamilton's bowling is seriously underused. He can do a job, irrespective of the format, with the ball, but his main claim to the playing eleven must be his batting.

[hhm]

...Shingirai, 24, is also part of the touring cricket squad, making his test debut when the five-day match started here on Thursday with the prized wicket of Martin Guptill. He earned the respect of New Zealand captain Ross Taylor as the pick of the bowlers. Ironically it was the elder Masakadza who was the most frugal after day one as an occasional right-hand medium pacer who claimed Dean Brownlie's wicket for a duck.

So I'm not the only one who thinks Jarvis, Vitori & Cremer were the worst of the attack! Butcer, along with a few here must be delusional then! Being captain, best batsman of the team plus a player who faced all of them on the way to an unbeaten century, I'll take Ross' opinion over anybody's.

Cremer will be most thankfull that he's been spared the T20s&ODIs, as for the other two.........Surely enough money can be collected to send Ewing, Vusi, Rainsford&Tinashe up there instead! Once again in the WC, NZ did aknowledge that Panyangara bowled very well and they were looking to see him off!

CrimsonAevnger, I don't think Matsi is breathing down Hami's neck. Hami should be moved down the order to 5 and that should be ok for him - our own version VVS!

It's no coincidence that even Matsi(as captain) plays himself lower down the order in the Logan Cup. All of Vusi, Taylor, Hami, Matsi & Waller play(have played the bulk of FC matches in seasons leading up to now) from 4 onwards, in our Logan Cup, which is not that competitive either, so they often rack up scores against tired, raw & inexperienced bowlers(even Forster too has spent over 90% of his FC career outside the top3)! This is a serious problem in Zim, and that's why we should let them be and allow them not to occupy top 3 spots. It's too late now, the only thing that can be done is to work on the younger generation to ensure that they're skilled enough, and national team players are only allowed to occupy the top 3 positions in any FC team.

As it stands, Vusi should be 3. You can see how he's struggling, now that he's opening in our ListA&FC games. The fact that he's done well thus far doesn't mean his form would've carried on. Considering that the other batsmen failed, we should not assume that Vusi would have done better either. None of our current bats are natural openers!

The way I see it, there are only 3 batsmen who can/or are likely to be replaced - Tino, Forster, Waller & Regis! The rest (Taibu, Vusi, Hami & Taylor) should be persevered with. The gulf between the two classes of players should be obvious even to you. Were Matsi to do well in the ODIs, which is a given considering he's arguably the most complete batsman in our squad, Waller should be the only one worried in the long term, because Forster is holding on to Vusi's spot, while Regis for all my appreciation of his performances, cannot keep out an allrounder(Elton) for much longer! Waller should be worried, not Hami!

[betterdays]

[quote(even Forster too has spent over 90% of his FC career outside the top3)!!

Is it possible to find past logan cup records easily becasue this is the first season i have followed it with more than a passing interest - my focus has always been on the national side and anyone who has -at an point been selected for it. So, I only know Forster as a #3 bat - where he's scored fairly heavily this season

[hhm]

2011/12, 2010/11, 2009/10, 2008, 2006/7, 2005/6 Postponed, 2004/5, 2003/4, 2002/3, 2001/2, 2000/1, 1999/00, 1998/99

Mutizwa's played mostly at six! I think it's only this season that he's started playing at 3. Remember that this man was a full time wicket-keeper. Would've been better if he persisted. that way he'd have beed a sure bat for numebr 7 in our national team.

[foreignfield]

Mutizwa's played mostly at six! I think it's only this season that he's started playing at 3. Remember that this man was a full time wicket-keeper. Would've been better if he persisted. that way he'd have beed a sure bat for numebr 7 in our national team.

Forster played in the middle order while still with Manicaland/Easterns, but quickly nailed down the number 3 spot after his move to the Eagles in 2009/10, arguably his breakthrough season with 1000+ runs at an average of 60+. You can find a list of his FC matches at cricketarchive.com: http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Playe ... tches.html

[hhm]

You're right foreignfield, since the middle of that 2009/10 season, he switched to number 3.

[betterdays]

thanks hhm and foreignfield - intersting!