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Inexplicable Zimbabwean Selection

Neil Pickup

Cricket Web Moderator
I'm baffled at the way Zimbabwe have picked their XI for the game against Sri Lanka. It is so full of bits and pieces players it beggars belief.

CB Wishart - Specialist bat, fair enough
DA Marillier - why's this guy opening?
TJ Friend - first game this WC, then good enough to bat at 3 :O
A Flower - The Man
GW Flower - Batting All Rounder
T Taibu - Keeper, not that hot with the bat
AM Blignaut - Lower order slogger
S Matsikenyeri - I don't think it's unfair to say that if he was white he wouldn't be playing. Bowling 2 overs (badly) and batting 8.
HH Streak - Bowling All Rounder
SM Ervine - Erm, I still don't know what he's there for...
DT Hondo - Specialist bowler, fair enough.

There are three competent batsmen there - Wishart, Flower and Flower. How the ZCU can justify some of these selections is really beyond me.

Even so, the brothers might be guiding them to an unlikely victory. I would love Andy to sign off in style with a ton.

And with that, de Silva traps him LBW. Thank you, and goodnight.
 

luckyeddie

Cricket Web Staff Member
As dreadful a decision by the umpire as was the team selection by the Zimbabwean cricket selectors.
 

marc71178

Eyes not spreadsheets
Both Marillier and Friend are good hitters of the ball, and certainly started the innings in the right fashion.

Better that they bat there than now, as the pace is slowing rapidly!
 

Neil Pickup

Cricket Web Moderator
And look what happens when you don't have any batting below 5.

You collapse.

Matsikenyeri batted at 10, scored 1* off 3 balls, and bowled 2 overs for 13.
 

Rik

Cricketer Of The Year
Well Travis Friend hit 52 when batting at 3 about half a year ago. He's changed from a fast-bowling all-rounder into a batting all-rounder who bowls only a few overs, although he just doesn't have the scores to be picked only for that. I have no idea why they keep picking Ervine, maybe to annoy Olonga? Actually Olonga has retired too, but Ervine is about as good a bowler as Collingwood and just a lower order hitter, but ever since he was picked to play in the 5-0 drubbing to England, I have wondered why he is in the team. His career stats are not very impressive and he doesn't seem strong enough to be picked for either his batting or his bowling. Matsikenyeri, a speciallist bat with poor figures and pushed down to number 10...what a joke.

I hate seeing Zimbabwe cricket in a mess like this, 2 of their best players have retired too, it just shows that not only the selection is racist, it's policitical too. Andy Flower and Henry Olonga were told off for bringing polatics into cricket, what about doing the ZCU for that as well?
 

krkode

State Captain
I wouldn't be surprised, but I would be sad, if they got a South Africa-like ban because of these actions of theirs.
 

Langeveldt

Soutie
As for the Mastsikenyeri selection, well in Southern Africa they call it affermative action, everywhere else its called racism :!(
 

krkode

State Captain
Langeveldt said:
As for the Mastsikenyeri selection, well in Southern Africa they call it affermative action, everywhere else its called racism :!(
The USA has a system like that too, but it's mostly for college admissions and job applications, not for sports. Sports here have their fair share of "colored talent"...no need to show any extra preference.
 

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