Editorial Comment: A good day for Zimbabwe sport The Chevrons
Zimbabwe cricketer Tendai Chatara (third right) celebrates with his teammates after he dismissed Sri Lankan cricketer Niroshan Dickwella during the first one-day international (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe at the Galle International Cricket Stadium in Galle

Zimbabwe cricketer Tendai Chatara (third right) celebrates with his teammates after he dismissed Sri Lankan cricketer Niroshan Dickwella during the first one-day international (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe at the Galle International Cricket Stadium in Galle

YESTERDAY was a very good day for Zimbabwean sport with the national cricket team breaking records to beat Sri Lanka in an ODI in Galle while the Warriors hammered Seychelles to qualify for the knock-out phase of the COSAFA Castle Cup in South Africa.

We join the rest of the nation in celebrating the victories by our representative sports teams with our Warriors ending years of under-achievement at the regional tournament to take their place among the big boys in the last eight of this tourney.

There are some who have questioned the need to send a strong side to the COSAFA Castle Cup, a tournament we last won eight years ago, but we agree with ZIFA president Philip Chiyangwa and coach Sunday Chidzambwa that the era when our national football team would be punching bags is over.

After all, it is important to breed a culture of winning in whatever tournament that we play in, and any national team representing this country in any discipline should know they should always try as much as they can to win.

Chidzambwa, the last coach to win the COSAFA Castle Cup with the Warriors, has an impressive record in this tournament where he is yet to lose a match and he said it loud and clear before he left for South Africa, the mission was to try and bring the trophy home.

And, judging from what we have seen so far at the tournament, we believe Chidzambwa has assembled a very strong side capable of doing just that by scoring 10 goals in their three group games, after another four-goal demolition of Mozambique in the first game before we were robbed of a victory by a blundering Botswana referee in the match against Madagascar.

That the Warriors could destroy Seychelles by six goals, even after Chidzambwa rang the changes to give some of the players action at the tournament, showed that we have a lot of depth when it comes to football in this country.

But, of course, the real battles now begin with the Warriors set to take on a rapidly-improving Swaziland in their quarter-final tomorrow and, after playing three matches in six games, our boys will have to do more to beat a Sihlangu side that is fresh and raring to go.

Countries like Swaziland, unlike us, tend to send their very best players to tournaments like the COSAFA Castle Cup, and we have all seen how the Swazi side has improved in recent years, in which they came second behind us in the qualifiers for the 2017 AFCON finals and beat Guinea home and away during the qualifiers.

However, with players like influential skipper Ovidy Karuru, scorer of five goals in the tournament so far, and his co-captain Ocean Mushure, who has been impressive at this tourney, we believe that we have the players who can do the job.

Chidzambwa’s decision to leave a number of his regulars for yesterday’s game could also come in handy as they would be fresh for tomorrow’s assignment against Swaziland.

Just like the Warriors, we also challenge the Chevrons not to lose their focus simply because they destroyed all records to beat Sri Lanka in their backyard yesterday, but to keep the momentum so that they can win the series.

The Chevrons showed yesterday that when they really play to their potential, they are as good as any team and, after a very difficult period in which they have suffered defeats to lightweights opponents like Afghanistan, Scotland and the Netherlands, a successful adventure in Sri Lanka could just show those who have been mocking us that we still can play competitive cricket in this country.

The victory over Sri Lanka also showed the value of preparations as the Chevrons appeared to have benefited immensely from preparing for that first ODI in Galle through matches they played in Scotland and the Netherlands.

We saw that after the shocking poor show in their first game in Scotland where the players struggled to adjust to the conditions, their performance levels improved in subsequent matches and when they arrived in Sri Lanka they were ready for the showdown against their hosts.

With the Warriors and the Chevrons doing very well yesterday, we challenge CAPS United to ensure they keep that momentum alive by refusing to be buried by the White Knights of Egypt when they take on Zamalek in a decisive CAF Champions League match at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow.

A victory by the Green Machine will help keep their dream of making the quarter-finals alive and, as the Chevrons showed them yesterday, the quality of the opposition doesn’t really matter if you put everything into the fight.

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