Zim volleyball brothers

10 Nov, 2019 - 00:11 0 Views

The Sunday Mail

Veronica Gwaze

Coaches Chekuda Makuyana and Itsanang Abu-Basutu are always battling for the top seat in Zimbabwe’s volleyball.

To the ordinary person, the duo are just rival coaches from two club powerhouses — University of Zimbabwe Wolves and Harare City. However, their relationship dates back to the 1990s.

While most might expect to see their rivalry coming in between them, Makuyana and Abu-Basutu actually celebrate each other’s victories.

The two met back in the 90s in Bulawayo when Abu-Basutu was playing for Luveve. Makuyana was featuring for Founders High School. Abu-Basutu went on to sign as Falcon College coach while Makuyana, who was still a student, became one of his players. Later, they both moved to the now defunct Unit Fair Bridge club as players.

It is at Unit Fair Bridge that Abu-Basutu bagged his first individual medal.

“Unit Fair Bridge was my first home and I also had a short coaching stint there.

“With Makuyana, we became more than brothers as we played for the same team on the same position.

“We have enjoyed the sporting journey and I do not regard him as a coach, he is simply my young brother,” Abu-Basutu said.

In 1992, then a member of the Zimbabwe National Army, Abu-Basutu joined Black Rhinos under the mentorship of Martin Dururu. Makuyana did the same a year later after also joining the army.

For more than five years, the two played for Rhinos as power hitters and won several accolades. For three years, Abu-Basutu also captained Rhinos.

However, Makuyana went on to become Rhinos head coach, with Abu-Basutu becoming his assistant.

After resigning from Rhinos, Abu-Basutu took charge of Colba, before moving again to Railstars. Later, Makuyana also resigned from the army and took over the coaching job at Colba. “It’s as if God always wanted us to be together. For more than a decade, we have somehow found a way to work with each other,” chuckled Abu-Basutu.

From Railstars, Abu-Basutu joined police side, Support Unit, before turning them into 2017 champions.

This time around, Makuyana briefly abandoned volleyball due to its lack of adequate sponsorship.

“I felt demotivated, hence I abandoned volleyball.”

He, however, bounced back as Cornway College head coach.

“When I returned to the courts, I realised that this sport is my calling. I cannot run away from volleyball,” said Makuyana.

Besides producing big names in five consecutive years, Makuyana guided Cornway to the championship.

With both coaches being nomadic, Abu Basutu then joined Harare City on their formation in 2017, while Makuyana also signed for rivals UZ Wolves.

He won the championship with them.

Despite his success and dominance over Harare City in the recent past, Makuyana has high regard for Abu-Basutu.

He calls him his elder brother and acknowledges that he has learned a lot from him.

“For the greater part of my life, I have been with Abu-Basutu. Our experiences have contributed so much to our achievements.

“Because of our history, our strategies click, which is why our clubs have made waves. Our matches are unpredictable.

“For us, volleyball is passion. We were taught to be winners, so whenever we step on the court, we are hungry for victory,” said Makuyana.

The duo’s clubs are now targeting success in the Zone VI Championships.

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