Zim ready for World Cup Sub-Regional qualifiers

Zimpapers Sports Hub

Zimbabwe Cricket coach Justin Sammons will be hoping to put the Chevrons’ nightmarish performances at the recent World Cup qualifiers behind him, as his team looks to take another crack at continental qualification this week.

Zimbabwe missed out on both the ICC 2023 One-Day International World Cup competition and most recent T20 global showcase held in the United States and West Indies in June.

The T20 global contest was the most painful to miss, as Zimbabwean cricket fans watched from afar as Uganda and Namibia graced the T20 World Cup after the Associate member states punched their tickets at the Africa World Cup Qualifiers last year.

Uganda went on to claim their first “special” win in their debut appearance, beating Papua New Guinea by three wickets at Providence Stadium in Guyana.

Namibia, on the other hand, wrote yet another chapter in their never-ending case for full-member status.

Their best result remains a Super 12 finish at the 2021 T20 World Cup held in India.

While it is important to note that Sammons was not yet at the helm when the Chevrons failed to qualify for the 2024 T20 World Cup at last year’s Africa Qualifier Regional Finals in Namibia, the pain and significance of that result will not be lost on the former West Indies international.

Zimbabwe have now missed three out of the last four World Cups — ODIs and T20s — and will have to go through a qualifying tournament for the 2026 T20 World Cup.

They will qualify automatically for the ODI World Cup 2027 as co-hosts.

The regional tournament for the 2026 T20 World Cup is slated for October 17 to 26 in Kenya, and Sammons is optimistic of his charges’ chances at securing their place at the competition to be co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India.

The Zimbabwe national team coach told Zimpapers Sports Hub that his charges were ready for the qualifiers.

“Preparations have been extremely good,” said Sammons.

“Prior to the T10 tournament, we had a three-week camp in which we had a squad of about 40 players that we have since trimmed.

“In the last week or so, we have been working with the squad that will go to Kenya and I am quite happy with what I have seen.

“We are really optimistic of our chances to qualify.”

Once again, Zimbabwe go into the regional tournament as the highest-ranked team as they are 12th on the global standings, while the rest of the teams ply their trade in the ICC developmental league.

Sammons has refused to read too much into the rankings, opting for a more cautious approach.

History has proven that surprises can indeed happen, and Sammons does not want to take any team for granted.

“We have respect for each and every opposition that we are going to play,” he said.

“However, what is important is for us to follow up on our process and make sure we achieve what we want to achieve during each match-up.”

Zimbabwe named a relatively young 15-member squad in which they retained roughly 11 players who took part in India’s visit for five T20 matches in
June.

Two uncapped players — all-rounder Tashinga Musekiwa and right-arm fast bowler Tinotenda Maposa — were added to the national team, while the others have returned from injury.

“I am very happy with the composition of the squad and everyone is really prepared for this. They know what is at stake,” said Sammons.

The tournament is set to be played in a round-robin format, with the top team progressing to the regional qualifiers.

Zimbabwe will battle it out against Gambia, Kenya, Seychelles, Mozambique and Rwanda, and open their campaign with a date against Seychelles on October 19.

A day later, they play hosts Kenya before playing Mozambique on October 22.

On October 23, the Chevrons will take on Gambia before rounding off their campaign with a date against Rwanda on October 24.