Brandon Moyo, Brandonmalvin9@gmail.com
A moment of pride awaits Bulawayo as Queens Sports Club prepares to host a historic two-match Test series between Zimbabwe and Afghanistan, starting on Boxing Day, Thursday. The two Tests are part of a full tour of Zimbabwe by Afghanistan, with their white-ball matches concluding today with the third and final One Day International (ODI) at Harare Sports Club.
The visitors lead the three-match ODI series 1-0 after the first game was abandoned due to persistent rain. They then went on to register their biggest win in the format (in terms of runs), securing a massive 232-run victory in the second encounter on Thursday.
Excitement has already begun to build among the Bulawayo cricket faithful ahead of the historic Boxing Day and New Year’s Day Tests. What makes these two games special is that they will mark Zimbabwe’s first Boxing Day Test at home in 28 years and the country’s first-ever New Year’s Test, all hosted at the City of Kings and Queens’ ceremonial home of cricket.
The Boxing Day Test will run from 26 to 30 December, while the New Year’s Test is scheduled for 2 to 7 January. To date, the country has hosted only one Boxing Day Test, when Zimbabwe faced England in 1996 in a drawn match severely affected by rain at Harare Sports Club. Since then, Zimbabwe’s only other Boxing Day Tests have been played away from home — against New Zealand in Wellington in 2000 and against South Africa in the inaugural pink-ball, day-night, four-day Test in Port Elizabeth in 2017. Zimbabwe also played Sri Lanka in a Test that started on December 27, 2001 in Colombo. Zimbabwe has never played a New Year’s Test, either at home or abroad.
Given the significance of these events, Victor Mhlanga, the Tuskers general manager, said it is all systems go at Queens Sports Club as they prepare to make history. Mhlanga expressed his gratitude to Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) for granting them the opportunity to be part of this historic series.
“These are important fixtures. Anywhere in the world, Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests are iconic, and we are looking forward to hosting them here in Bulawayo at Queens Sports Club. Everything is in place, all is going well, and the ground staff have been working hard to ensure the pitch is in pristine condition. We are proud to have been given this opportunity to host these games. It feels good to be hosting something as significant as this. We thank Zimbabwe Cricket for the opportunity,” said Mhlanga.
He also urged all cricket fans in and around Bulawayo to attend the match in large numbers.
“With that, we call on everyone in Bulawayo to come in their numbers, support the national team, and cherish the moment,” he said.
The Boxing Day match will be free of charge to all spectators, so the call is for all cricket and sport-loving people to make their way to Queens Sports Club. Earlier, ZC chairperson Tavengwa Mukuhlani expressed that it is a proud moment for Zimbabwe to be hosting the two iconic Tests.
“Boxing Day and New Year’s Test matches are iconic fixtures that we are delighted to add to our calendar this festive season. We are looking forward to celebrating in style one of the finest traditions in the sport’s long history,” said Mukuhlani.
In the spirit of giving and spreading festive joy, a call has been made for fans to bring unused toys and clothes to donate to underprivileged children. Both ZC and the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) have named their squads for the historic series. ZC announced their squad on Thursday, which includes seven uncapped players, including Ben Curran. Apart from Curran, the other uncapped players selected for the series are batter Johnathan Campbell, wicketkeeper-batters Tadiwanashe Marumani and Nyasha Mayavo, as well as pace bowlers Trevor Gwandu, Takudzwa Chataira, and Newman Nyamhuri.
Craig Ervine will captain the Zimbabwe side, with the experienced Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Blessing Muzarabani, and Richard Ngarava providing a strong core to the squad. Meanwhile, Afghanistan welcomes the return of Rashid Khan to red-ball cricket. The 26-year-old Khan last played Test cricket in 2021 against Zimbabwe in Abu Dhabi in a series that ended 1–1. He missed his team’s recent Tests on medical advice to recover from a back injury, for which he underwent surgery earlier this year.
Zimbabwe test squad:
Craig Ervine (captain), Ben Curran, Brian Bennett, Johnathan Campbell, Takudzwa Chataira, Joylord Gumbie, Trevor Gwandu, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Nyasha Mayavo, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Newman Nyamhuri, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams.
Afghanistan Test Squad:
Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Rahmat Shah (vice-captain), Ikram Alikhail (wicketkeeper), Afsar Zazai (wicketkeeper), Riaz Hassan, Sediqullah Atal, Abdul Malik, Baheer Shah Mahboob, Ismat Alam, Azmatullah Omarzai, Zahir Khan, Zia Ur Rehman Akbar, Zahir Shehzad, Rashid Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai, Bashir Ahmad Afghan, Naveed Zadran, Fareed Ahmad.
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