The Sunday Mail
Sports Reporter
WHEN news of their call-up to the Chevrons squad for this month’s T20 World Cup broke, the Chitungwiza quintet of Tony Munyonga, Wesley Madhevhere, Clive Madande, Milton Shumba and Tadiwa Marumani decided to meet and celebrate.
For the fearsome five, the call-up was the realisation of a childhood dream of one day wearing the Chevrons colours at the World Cup. Unfortunately for the clique, only Munyonga, Madhevhere, Madande and Shumba look poised to actually live out that dream.
The four are part of the travelling 15-man squad, while Marumani is among the five non-travelling reserves.
The T20 World Cup is set for October 16 to November 13 in Australia.
Munyonga told The Sunday Mail Sport of his shock and delight when he received the good news.
“I was shocked when I received the message that I had made it into the team,” said Munyonga.
“It is one of those moments that you do not know what to do or what to say when it happens.
“You tend to hug the person who will be next to you because of the excitement.
“What made the announcement even more special for me was the fact that my friends, most of whom I grew up with in Chitungwiza, were also part of the team.
Munyonga could not help relive memories he shared with his friends over the years.
They never thought they would represent the team at the same time and at such a prestigious stage as the World Cup.
It was all a dream.
“To be honest, we all dreamt of playing for the national team, but none of us ever envisioned it would actually come true.
“Now, it is a reality, and this will be our first World Cup together.
“It is a massive thing to everyone.
“Having all your best friends around as you play at the highest level is just surreal.
“After we saw all our names on the list, we just had to throw a small party and celebrate,” he said.
Despite having been rivals in their formative years, the five were to become very good friends.
Munyonga was at the same school with Madhevere – St Aidans; while Madande and Shumba attended Zengeza 2 Primary School when they first met. Marumani was at Zengeza 4 Primary School.
“We used to play against each other during our school days, but we would train together and soon became good friends.
“It was through our friendship that we pushed each other, and here we are today.
“Even when we started our professional careers, we have always reminded each other of the main goal.
“I think it has been through hard work and supporting each other that we are where we are today.”
Munyonga believes the presence of his childhood friends in the team will have a calming effect on him.
“It is always good vibes to be together, and this is the start of greatness for us all.
“We hope, as a group, to leave a lasting legacy,” said the Chevrons batter.
“As a group, we want to qualify to the next round, and I personally want to make a difference for the team.”
