The Sunday Mail
Brighton Zhawi
IT’S funny how so much can change in the space of just six years.
Back in 2015, Victor Nyauchi could hardly control his emotions, and shed a tear, as he was dismissed to give Bangladesh A, a narrow win over Zimbabwe’s Chevrons in a cricket match at Harare Sports Club.
Now, six years down the line, the 28-year-old could be seen, tongue out, fist-pumping as his fiery spell of 5-1-7-3 set the Chevrons well on the way to a rare Test victory over Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Such is the pride of the Mufakose-bred player that his neighbours feel a street in the high-density suburb should be renamed after him. Nyauchi is winning hearts and as much he yearns for a maiden five-wicket haul in first class cricket, he wants to win more games for Zimbabwe.
“(It was) good for the team to (win in two days) and to get some rest.
“We are ready to play another Test match. We need a win, so we are staying focused, and not putting pressure on ourselves.
“We are just enjoying the hotel facilities and not wondering (about the next Test),’’ he said. Nyauchi bowled, arguably, the best spell of his young Test career of four matches; a fiery spell of five overs, a maiden, seven runs and three wickets (5-1-7-3) during Afghanistan’s second innings.
“To win in two days was something special. We made history, but it has to be controlled as we have another game soon.
“We have to stay focused and win the series, “ said the right arm pace bowler who has played 40 first class matches picking 104 wickets. He is yet to pick a five-for, but has on seven occasions taken four wickets.
They say numbers don’t lie, but sometimes they don’t tell the real story.
Zimbabwe Test captain Sean Williams is a big fan of Nyauchi, and appreciates the bowler’s impact. “That guy is something special for us.“ He has come from a difficult place. I think he had performed for three or four seasons, without getting a look at the national side.
“However, when he did, he took his opportunity . . . he brings tonnes of sacrificial mindset and that work ethic.
“He is a workhorse and has good skill,” said Williams. The same love and respect he gives, Nyauchi seems to be getting back tenfold.
The streets of his Mufakose neighbourhood are rumoured to have been empty during the two-day Test, and that was partly due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Afghanistan Test.
“Ghetto youths are inspired by my brother,“ said Mufaro, Victor’s Nyauchi’s younger brother. “Most people were pleased to watch him on TV delivering some top spells in the Test win, and elders, in the hood, are already asking about the next game.
“They cannot wait to see him in action again. Some are even suggesting a change of the street’s name to Nyauchi since he has become a role model of sorts,” said Mufaro.
For the Chevrons player, it is important to preach and exhibit a sense of belonging in one’s neighbourhood.
“I am a people-person, and normally I try to support people’s dreams.
“I play in the Mufakose local football league, so people seeing me on TV is sort of a motivational thing.
“I thank God for all my blessings, and this opportunity,” he said.
Nyauchi says one of his biggest blessings is his family, and soon after arriving in the UAE, posted a picture of his two daughters Kendra and Krystal with the caption “I miss my family”.
“I miss them a lot.”
“It’s been a long time since I last saw them, due to bubble, and my daughters are everything to me. They remind me that when I was young I also needed love from my parents, so I always feel they need that as well. They give me energy, and I try to never let them down. They now recognise me on TV, and their mother told me that the younger one was actually making actions when I came really close to the screen.”
Victor, however, missed the birth of his second daughter as he was on national duty in Bangladesh in 2019.
This time around he missed his wife’s birthday. “Missing Krystal’s birth wasn’t okay and my wife’s birthday too, but I need the money to raise the kids.
“I have to put in the work.
“I am glad I have got an understanding wife; she is strong, especially in times like these, and we believe there is more in the future. We will celebrate her birthday in due course, it’s all God’s plan,’’ Victor said.
