IT’S BEEN four years since Zimbabwe Cricket introduced the franchise system.
On the Crease with Vumi Moyo
This week we take a look at the effects it has had on cricket in the country.
The main objective of the franchise system was to facilitate the return to Test cricket by giving the players as much first class cricket as possible.
To a large extent this has taken place.
Zimbabwe managed to attract a lot of world-class personnel in the last four years including legends Jason Gillespie, Allan Donald, Chris Gayle, Lance Klusner and Dave Houghton, among others. The Standard Bank T20 also exposed local players as the games were broadcast to the world.
The players have no doubt benefited from working with so much experience in the game. Has this, however, translated to results on the field, especially with the national team? I will leave you to decide.
Current England Test opener Nick Compton spent a season at Harare-based Eagles, another England hopeful, Gary Balance has been a run machine for the MidWest Rhinos.
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The bowlers have gained a lot by bowling at world-class players, but there is a school of thought that overseas players benefit more from their stints in Zimbabwe at the expense of local players. Again I will leave you to decide for yourself. Zimbabwe in the recent past seems to be improving, as more players are coming through the franchises — the likes of Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Netsai Mushangwe, Richard Muzhange and Njabulo Ncube have all forced their way into the national side on the back of strong franchise performances.
Zimbabwe has held their own at home, but the problem seems to be as soon as they cross the borders.
The pitches in the country are diverse, but obviously not enough and our players have struggled on foreign conditions especially in the Caribbean and New Zealand. Could more be done to assist players get used to conditions outside Zimbabwe?
The off-season allows some players a chance to play overseas. Helpful as this is, the answer could lay in longer tours and more cricket away from home.
It is a bit of a Catch 22 situation because for you to go on longer tours you have to be playing good cricket and for you to play good cricket you have to go on longer tours.
Australia have reacted to their disastrous recent past by firing their first foreign-born coach South African Mickey Arthur and replacing him with former Aussie great Darren Lehmann.
Cricket Australia hopes to save the series from being the most one- sided ashes series in living memory.
No one in the cricketing word is giving Australia a chance, but the underdog tag might just work in their favour. Watch this space for details as we get ever closer to the first ashes test.
In the Caribbean, the hosts got off to the perfect start defeating both India and Sri Lanka in the first two matches of their tri-series.
Tuskers yesterday handed out kit worth $40 000 to schools and clubs in the franchise.
It is another first by the best-administered franchise in the country. The kit was sourced from Pakistan.
We hope the kit will be put to good use and produce more players for the franchise and national team in the near future.
The date for the India tour at Queens has been set as July 31 and August 3.
On The Crease will give a ticket a week to a lucky reader until the tour.
This week’s question; Name two previous Indian captains?
Send your answers to [email protected] cc [email protected].
