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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter

ZIMBABWE captain Craig Ervine is a bit worried by the injuries stalking their dressing room ahead of the Test cricket series against West Indies in Bulawayo beginning next week.

The left hander is hoping that the Chevrons will have all their players back in good condition for the taxing longer version of the game, after the recent knocks to all-rounder Sean Williams and Tendai Chatara.

Fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani has been out for longer and was unavailable for selection during the recent six-match white ball home series against Ireland, as he was recovering from quadriceps injury.

Williams picked up a finger injury during the T20I matches against Ireland and eventually missed the rest of the ODI series.

Chatara has been struggling with a knee injury and Ervine is hoping the fast bowler will be up and running again by the time they play the first Test on February 4.

“We obviously have Sean Williams who got a fracture earlier on in the T20I series,” said Ervine.

“Tendai Chatara is also struggling with a knee injury and we also have just a few tired bodies after the ODI and T20I matches against Ireland. “I think we have got probably less than two weeks or so before the first Test. So we just have got to try and have those players back into shape and try to manage those injuries the best we can,” said Ervine.

The first Test is slated for February 4-8, and the second Test match set for February 12-16. All matches are pencilled in for 10am starting time and will be played at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.

The West Indies are expected to fine tune for the series with a three-day warm-up match against the Zimbabwe XI side scheduled to run from this Saturday to Monday at Bulawayo Athletic Club.

The Zimbabwe XI side was announced yesterday and it features most of the players that have been playing consistently in the domestic Logan Cup first class competition.

The 15-man squad includes five players with Test caps in Donald Tiripano, Carl Mumba, Timycen Maruma, Wessly Madhevere and Milton Shumba.

Players enjoying good form in the Logan Cup — among them Tapiwa Mufudza, Joylord Gumbie, Kudzai Maunze, Tanunurwa Makoni and Priviledge Chesa — have been selected.

Eagles paceman Mufudza is currently the leading wicket-taker with 26 scalps from six games while 22-year-old Chesa has 22 wickets for Southern Rocks in his second season. The likes of Munyonga, Makoni and Maunze have also done well with the bat in first class cricket.

“The Zimbabwe XI side is going down to Bulawayo, I think this Thursday (today). There will be a warm up game at Bulawayo Athletic Club and I think the guys who were not involved in the series against Ireland will have a chance to play in that.

“We also need to familiarise ourselves with the conditions, which are slightly different to Harare and I hope we put on a good show there,” said Ervine.

Zimbabwe are likely to build their Test squad around most of the players that featured in the recent white ball series against Ireland as the Chevrons do not have the luxury of having separate teams for different formats because of the limited pool of players.

“We are a kind of establishment that doesn’t have two different squads,” said Zimbabwe coach Dave Houghton during the recent series against Ireland.

“We don’t have enough players for that. Our players are playing in all the formats. So, if you go into the Test series, for example and then lose, that can knock your ODI form back as well. So we have got to make sure that we keep the standard at home,” said Houghton.

But Zimbabwe rarely play Test matches these days and will be featuring in the longest version of the game after a one-and-a-half year absence, having last played the format in July 2021 at home against Bangladesh.

The recent T20I and ODI series against Ireland at least prepared them for international cricket, after they had last played at the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup in Australia two months back.

Ervine said the series was key for Zimbabwe’s integration purposes as younger players like Clive Madande, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brad Evans and Wessly Madhevere were given generous opportunities alongside the experienced players. However, the young guns struggled for most of the series.

“It’s an important transition to have the young guys mixed with the older guys. And, having a few injuries in our team throughout the series gave the other guys an opportunity to put up their hands and showcase their skills.

“It’s going to be an important part of us going forward to try and have those youngsters in. But at the same time you don’t want them to be mentally affected if they do go through a bad patch of form. So it’s quite a fine balance,” said Ervine.