The Sunday Mail
Deputy Sports Editor
ZIMBABWE men’s basketball coach Kelvin Ben has been a bundle of nerves over the past few days. Having conquered local basketball, where his club Foxes and Vixens’ sides are the reigning Harare and National League champions, respectively, he now takes his first steps onto the international stage when Zimbabwe host the AfroCan and AfroBasket qualifiers scheduled to start tomorrow.
Six nations and 10 teams are expected to meet in Bulawayo for the men’s AfroCan and women’s AfroBasket tournaments slated for February 20-28 at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair courts. It is Ben’s first international assignment since his appointment as coach of the Zimbabwe senior men’s team.
“Yeah, plenty of nerves,” Ben said.
“I never thought this would be a difficult task. I have always been under the impression that this would be an easy transition.
“I have been working until midnight, trying to come up with the final 15 men who will represent us at the tournament.
“I am experiencing a lot of nerves and a lot of butterflies. I actually don’t know where the courage to apply for this job came from.”
The two tournaments are set to mark Zimbabwe’s official return to international basketball.
Malawi, Mozambique, Angola, Zambia and South Africa are among the teams confirmed for the week-long basketball extravaganza.
Angola, Zambia, Mozambique, South Africa and hosts Zimbabwe are set to compete in the Women’s AfroBasket Zone Six qualifiers, with the finals of the quadrennial tournament pencilled in for July 28-August 6 in Kigali, Rwanda.
In the men’s AfroCan Qualifiers, however, Ben and his charges are expected to battle it out against Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique and South Africa. The tournament — which is a national team competition targeting players based on the continent, as well as countries that will not compete in the World Cup African Qualifiers — is still relatively new.
Four teams have already made it for the finals of the second edition of the FIBA AfroCan by virtue of reaching the semi-finals of the last edition that was held in Bamako, Mali.
These include DRC (champions), Kenya (runners-up), Angola (third-place) and Morocco, who finished fourth.
The host nation and the dates of the 2023 FIBA AfroCan are yet to be announced.
Zimbabwe’s lead-up to the tournament has not been rosy.
The team failed to assemble for camp, while the availability of talisman and skipper Vitalis Chikoko was also a major talking point.
Fortunately, Ben has since confirmed that Chikoko, who plies his trade in France, has indeed made the trip back home and will be available. The 32-year-old Pau-Orthez centre has been handed one of the four slots available for players who ply their trade outside their country’s borders.
“Having Vitalis Chikoko in the team boosts the confidence levels in the team, as the players actually play better knowing that their captain is with them.
“He is an international player who comes with a lot of experience. You should remember he comes from a league where they play two professional games a week.
“Hopefully, he will arrive just in time to travel with the team to Bulawayo,” he said.
The teams have been meeting thrice a week for the past two months.
“This should count for something,” added Ben.
“While it would have been ideal to assemble as a team in camp, it is what it is and we have managed to rack up quite a number of practice sessions.
“That should be enough.”
Ben is also banking on exposure from the Harare Basketball Association Super 6 League, which provided most of the players with a platform for high-level basketball on a weekly basis for several months.
