The image of some media after the match about the fact that the Pakistan team lost the last ball to Zimbabwe and fell short of the target of 130 runs, many media including the Pakistani media wrote that losing to Zimbabwe was the biggest disgrace in the world and that Pakistan had been disgraced. It’s natural to wonder why it’s so ugly to lose to Zimbabwe.
It is the ICC’s favoritism over some of the richest cricket boards that are members of the ICC that has degraded Zimbabwean cricket to this state. In other words, Zimbabwean cricket was destroyed little by little due to the influence of money-rich boards like Australia, England and BCCI on the ICC. If this is 50% of the reason, the country’s domestic political situation is also a major factor.
That is, Zimbabwe is the most black African country. Many of the white cricketers there have developed and become captains and some have become coaches of other cricket teams, which would not have been possible without the contribution of the marginalized black players in Zimbabwe.
Some of Zimbabwe’s best players like Andy Flower and Grant Flower are very rich. Hectares of land amassed. A cricket ground and a pitch were set up in this, and the cricket of Andy Flower and Grand Flower developed after black players were trained there to bowl.
It was in the 1980s that a new chapter of Zimbabwean cricket opened. It was on July 21, 1981 that Zimbabwe became an Associate Member of the ICC. Zimbabwe first participated in the 1983 Cricket World Cup, the Prudential World Cup then held in England. Dankung Fletcher, who later coached the Indian team, was appointed as the captain. The team included an all-rounder named Kevin Karan who was talked about in Kapildev’s caliber. His sons are Sam Curran and Tom Curran who are currently mixing England cricket.
Graham Hick, who has been described as England’s best ever player, is a Zimbabwean. Dave Hutton is a great wicket keeper batsmen. In the 1983 World Cup, the Australian team led by Kim Hughes had a formidable force of Kepler Wessels, Alan Border, Marsh, Rodney Hawke and Jeff Lawson. But Zimbabwe shocked Australia and won the first match. India started the 1983 World Cup on a grand note, defeating Zimbabwe and Australia to beat the world champions May Islands. That was the beginning of the downfall of the cricketing giants.
But after this the whites left Zimbabwe. After playing in 3 World Cups from 1983 to 1992, the ICC made it a condition that they should play in the qualifying round for the next World Cups. That is, to qualify for the ICC Trophy with the Associate Teams. Zimbabwe have won all the matches which have been completed each time. Andy Bycroft, Dave Hutton and the excellent swing bowler Peter Rosson remained in the team. John Drygas, an Ever Green off-spinner, made Zimbabwe cricket proud at the time.
It was only in 1992 that Zimbabwe got Test status. Played the first Test against India. India struggled to put a good green top pitch on their home soil. India almost had to follow on as Zimbabwe made 456 runs. In the end the match was a draw. Zimbabwe made India proud by keeping India undefeated in the opening Test. Zimbabwe won their first Test in 1994-95 in their 11th Test. Funnily enough, this win was also against Pakistan. Pakistan lost by 64 runs.
After that, a hard-hitting Zimbabwe missed out on a few wins. Zimbabwe eventually won a close match against India in 1998-99. Zimbabwe also won the Test series in Pakistan. The England board was clear that Zimbabwe should not get Test status. But it was England that Zimbabwe defeated in the ODI match. Your home kick is not our home kick as Zimbabwe beat England 3-0. Then in Sharjah, the new World Cup champion, Zimbabwe defeated Sri Lanka and then India to reach the final of the ODI series. India won the trophy thanks to Sachin Tendulkar’s wild century in the final.
In the 1999 World Cup, Zimbabwe beat India and Kenya. Came very close against Australia and lost. But Zimbabwe won the World Cup by 48 runs against a very strong South African team who were tipped to win the World Cup. Neil Johnson, Murray Goodwin, Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Alistair Campbell, Heath Streak, Henry Olanga were good batsmen and bowlers.
Zimbabwe’s opportunity to prove its mettle at the 2003 World Cup on home soil was marred by controversy. The England team announced that they will not travel to Zimbabwe. Andy Flower and Henry Olango protested by wearing black bands.
The decision to remove Heath Streak as captain in April 2004 created a major crisis for Zimbabwean cricket. Calls for Zimbabwe to be disqualified from Tests have grown louder at the ICC. After that, Zimbabwe lost the Test and ODI series to Bangladesh and were pushed to the bottom of the group. The Zimbabwe Cricket Board subsequently handed himself a one-year Test ban. When it came back to international cricket, Zimbabwe had become a very weak team.
The Pakistan team was the only one that respected the ICC’s travel schedule for Zimbabwe. Pakistan continued to play with Zimbabwe despite not having much funding in these tours. A closer look at the Pakistani players’ runs and wickets records shows that they have taken the most runs and wickets with Zimbabwe. If there is one country that has been filtered out of cricket, it is Zimbabwe.
The Zimbabwean delegation was relegated to a corner seat at the ICC General Assembly annual meetings. Reports surfaced that no one would even talk to the Zimbabwean delegation. Zimbabwe is remembered only during voting times. Major members of the ICC sidelined Zimbabwe.
The last time England played Zimbabwe, in any format, was in 2007. Australia last traveled to Zimbabwe for a Test series in 2003. It has been 15 years since Australia participated in a T20 tri-series in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe last played in India in 2001. The last Test match between the two teams was in 2005. In 2019, the ICC imposed a ban on the Zimbabwean board citing interference by the country’s government. Due to this, Zimbabwe lost the chance to qualify for the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Many Zimbabwean cricketers were, and still are, living below the poverty line. In desperation of poverty, many cricketing talents are forced to resort to wage labour. They don’t have proper shoes, they dance with torn shoes. Players’ salaries are pending. The ICC ban has ruined Zimbabwean cricket. Zimbabwean cricket faced many hurdles under President Robert Mugabe. It is a country that has experienced major economic downturns.
Now in this World Cup against South Africa in the rain in Hobart despite the risk of injury to their fast bowlers. The Zimbabwean team was furious. We also saw a player leave halfway through with an injury. In the end the points were shared. “Zimbabwe shouldn’t have bowled a ball,” Zimbabwean coach Dave Hutton said angrily.
Given this background, it will be clear how big a deal Zimbabwe’s win against Pakistan is for the team, the players and the cricket fans of the country. It’s not ugly to lose to Zimbabwe, it’s ugly to beat a team that hasn’t developed all these years!