Bongani Ndlovu
THIS past week Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) made a raft of changes in the set-up of the Chevrons suggesting that they have woken up from their slumber and it’s no more business as usual.
On Tuesday ZC fired senior national team coach Dav Whatmore and stripped top order batsman Hamilton Masakadza of the captaincy just days before the arrival of India for three one-day internationals (ODIs) and two T20 games.
Whatmore, who had been at the helm of the Chevrons from December 2014, was replaced by his assistant, former South African speedster and bowling coach Makhaya Ntini on an interim basis until a substantive successor is appointed.
Masakadza was sacked as captain across all formats of the game and replaced by his deputy Graeme Creamer, also on an interim basis.
After a string of very poor results last year especially in the batting department ZC has also appointed former South African all-rounder Lance Klusener as batting coach on a two-year contract starting on Sunday.
Some questionable team selection may have also prompted ZC to have former Zimbabwe captain Tatenda Taibu as the new convener of a revamped selection panel that will include a head coach and his assistant.
Of course this “engine overhaul” was long overdue but the timing, for many, is not right in the light of the Indian tour that is upon the nation this coming week.
However, the coming in of Ntini to the squad is a boost to the players as his fiery character is the binary opposite of Whatmore who is subdued whether in victory or in loss.
Even in Pakistan, his last coaching stint before he came here, their famed bowler Saeed Ajmal said Whatmore came and never made a difference to the team. He said this after Pakistan lost a Test against Zimbabwe in Harare when Whatmore was at the helm.
Under Whatmore’s tutelage, Zimbabwe lost to lowly sides such as Afghanistan and has seen them being kicked out of the top 10 test side rankings.
If one watched the T20 World Cup in India, one would have seen how Ntini, who was the bowling coach at the time, was eccentric on the bench cheering the lads on when they had bat or ball in hand.
His then boss Whatmore, in typical former Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal-style, would sit emotionless on the bench, while Ntini would be shouting his lungs out encouraging the lads.
Although this is his first major cricketing job, Ntini looks like the best bet on an interim basis with the Indian tour being his acid test.
He shall be aptly assisted by Klusener, someone who has the numbers to back him up to teach our Chevrons a lesson or two.
What was problematic with the previous set-up was that it was filled with coaches that have never played consistently or at all, at the highest level of the game.
The root cause of the constant decline of Zimbabwe Cricket is because the players being produced are substandard and have little or no class to match Cricket powerhouses around the world.
This is because of the coaches in cricket structures that were put in by the board as some of them were coaching and selecting players who had more test, one day and T20 experience than them. The set up has not helped the Zimbabwean cause as they are now the whipping boys of the game.
Some may cry because the longest serving and arguably the most experienced player Hamilton Masakadza was stripped of his captaincy.
However, one has to question his fitness and also some of his decisions on the field. What comes to mind is his run out attempt during a Twenty20 International (T20I) with Afghanistan in Sharjah this year.
Masakadza tried to do South Africa’s Jonty Rhodes’ famous Super Man run out when he was standing at gully.
In his bulkiness, Masakadza thought he could travel faster than a ball that he could have easily thrown and failed dismally to run out Sharjah.
Word on the street is that Ntini is a fitness maniac, with his philosophy hinged on being in mint condition that will translate into positive results.
Now with Masakadza not being able to shed some weight maybe the board, in its infinite wisdom, decided to take off the skipper’s responsibility from him.
These changes, although noble, will take some time to kick in as the players now cannot be taught new tricks, but only can tweak whatever they learnt before to adapt to the modern game.
The overhaul has been done at the top, and this should trickle to the provincial and school structures.
It should be systematic and have goals to produce quality players that can play for the country at the highest level.
Better coaches, may mean better players and better results, translating into more cricket in Zimbabwe. But this will take some time.