Eddie Chikamhi
Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE Under-19 cricket captain Emmanuel Bawa says he would want to lead by example when the team plunges into battle at the ICC Under 19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022 in West Indies next month.
The youth team, which spent the festive holidays in camp, left the country shortly after lunch yesterday with high hopes despite the disruptions caused by Covid-19 during their preparations.
Bawa, who is the only surviving member of Zimbabwe’s squad at the previous edition of the ICC Under-19 World Cup hosted by South Africa in 2020, was named captain of the side ahead of the upcoming global youth cricket jamboree.
The right hand batsman has embraced the role with a positive mindset as he looks to draw inspiration from the head coach, Prosper Utseya, and batting, Elton Chigumbura, whom he ranks high among his childhood Zimbabwe cricket heroes.
“Honestly, the feeling is unreal because in the camp we have our batting coach Elton Chigumbura, who I used to look up to as a kid, and then coach Prosper Utseya, who I also adored as a kid.
“So having these role models augurs well with me as captain and it just makes the feeling unreal,” said Bawa.
“One of my biggest goals is to lead well, and to lead by example. As a leader, whatever I do needs to reflect on the other boys. That for me is one of my biggest goals.
“Then the second thing, we need to go as far as possible in the tournament; be in the top eight, top two. I will be happy with that.”
Bawa celebrated his 18th birthday in camp two weeks ago. The rising Zimbabwe cricket star made history at the youth cricket global showpiece when he became the first black Zimbabwean batsman to score a century at the previous tournament in South Africa two years ago.
He was the hero for Zimbabwe when he blasted an unbeaten 105 off just 95 balls in the crucial 95-run win over Canada.
The feat meant he became only the fourth Zimbabwean to score a century at the Under-19 World Cup. He joined the likes of Mark Vermeulen, Brendan Taylor (twice) and Malcolm Lake as the only Zimbabweans to notch up centuries at the youth global cricket tourney.
Zimbabwe went on to finish 11th at the last World Cup to secure automatic qualification to the forthcoming tournament. They are in Group C along with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Papua New Guinea.
Zimbabwe will kick-off their campaign against Afghanistan on January 16. They will then take on Pakistan four days later, and round off their group matches against Papua New Guinea on January 22.
There have been concerns about the disruptions in their preparations because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The team leaves for the tournament without playing any international game after their tours were cancelled due to the pandemic.
The selectors had a difficult time assembling the side since there was little cricket action taking place in schools in the last two years because of the same reason.
However, Bawa was excited by the progress they made during their month-long bubble, where they also had opportunities to play some practice games against local select teams. He was particularly impressed by the team bonding.
“The way we have managed to gel even in the face of the obvious circumstances of Covid-19; we could have been unlikely to be together but we have just managed to be a unit. I think it’s one thing I would say is outstanding from my point of view.
“The bubble has helped us even more with the gelling and it’s been a lovely experience. I would like to believe we are ready as we trained hard in the last few weeks as a group.
“I have been trying to tick the boxes that we have set as a team to look forward to and I would like to believe we have been giving it our all. I think we stand a chance of executing the game plan the coaches have given us,” said Bawa.
The side is scheduled to arrive in Barbados today and will conduct their first practice session tomorrow. They will engage in a triangular series against Ireland and USA from Wednesday and will play each of the teams twice before they depart for St Kitts and Nevis next Monday.
They will play two more friendly warm-up games against reigning champions Bangladesh and Canada between January 9 and 11. Zimbabwe will then set their final base in Trinidad and Tobago, where they play their World Cup group games against Afghanistan, PNG and Pakistan from January 16– 22.
Sixteen teams are taking part in the tournament and have been drawn into four groups. Reigning champions Bangladesh, England, Canada and the United Arab Emirates make up Group A.
India, Ireland, South Africa and Uganda are in Group B while Group D has Scotland, Australia, Sri Lanka and hosts West Indies.
The top two teams in the group qualify for the Super League stages while the bottom two drop to contest in the Plate.
Zimbabwe squad
Emmanuel Bawa (captain), Brian Bennett (vice-captain), David Bennett, Victor Chirwa, Mgcini Dube, Alex Falao, Tendekai Mataranyika, Tashinga Makoni, Connor Mitchell, Steven Saul, Matthew Schonken, Panashe Taruvinga, Matthew Welch, Rogan Wolhuter, Ngenyasha Zvinoera
Non-travelling reserves: Aisha Chibanda, Tanaka Zvaita, Luyanda Mtomba, Tadiwanashe Mwale, Declan Rugg.