NAM vs ZIM: Sikandar Raza Appointed As New T20I Captain Of Team Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) has initiated major changes after Zimbabwe faced a 3-2 defeat in the T20I series against Namibia. Zimbabwe Cricket has decided to give the T20 captaincy to esteemed all-rounder Sikandar Raza.
The board retained the services of Dave Houghton as the head coach keeping Zimbabwe’s pursuit of a spot in the upcoming T20 World Cup in mind. The T20 World Cup will be played jointly in the West Indies and the USA next year and Zimbabwe are currently ranked 11th in ICC T20I Rankings. Zimbabwe now have two captains across three formats with Craig Ervine still leading the team in ODIs and Tests.
Craig Ervine had a 54% win record in 38 games as a captain of Zimbabwe in T20Is. This is the best captaincy record for Zimbabwe in T20Is. Meanwhile, Sikandar Raza has led the side in four T20I games between 2015 and 2021. Raza led the team in all these matches as a stand-in captain.
Zimbabwe Cricket’s selection panel was also changed with Houghton and Elton Chigumbura joining convener David Mutendra in the panel. Elton Chigumbura is a former Zimbabwe cricketer, he was a bowling all-rounder and now will play his role in the selection panel for Zimbabwe Cricket.
Zimbabwe Cricket Was Banned During The ICC T20 World Cup 2021
Zimbabwe did not participate in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 due to the ban imposed by the ICC on Zimbabwe Cricket on grounds of government interference in its administration. In the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup, they finished first in the first round but eventually finished last in the Super-12 stage which barred them from qualifying automatically for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. The only team that Zimbabwe was able to defeat in the Super-12 of the 2022 T20 World Cup was Pakistan.
To secure their qualification in the T20 World Cup next year, Zimbabwe will have to play the regional qualifiers with teams like Rwanda, Uganda, Namibia, Tanzania, Nigeria, and Kenya. Namibia will host these qualifiers and after beating Zimbabwe in the T20I series, they will be filled with confidence and will give their best to secure a spot at the T20 World Cup. Zimbabwe were the host nation for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 qualifiers but they failed to qualify for the World Cup.
