Tour of  New Zealand 2011-12           Captain: Brendan Taylor

Zimbabwe’s twenty-first Test tour

Fourth Test-playing tour of New Zealand by Zimbabwe

   (January - February 2012)

Zimbabwe had not played any Test matches since September 2005.  Three visits to the country, made by Bangladesh, Pakistan and New Zealand, were arranged for 2011. Bangladesh were well beaten and New Zealand taken into the fifth day of a close-fought Test, raising hopes for the first Zimbabwean Test appearance overseas for six years. The tour included a reciprocal Test match against New Zealand with three one-day internationals and two Twenty20 games.

However, this first tour since readmission to Test cricket was a disaster. Coach Alan Butcher admitted that his side was embarrassed by losing the Test match within three days, being kept in the field for two of them and bowled out twice in a day on the third.  "It bore no relation to how we've played in recent times."  Zimbabwe went on to lose all the one-day and Twenty20 matches to give New Zealand a clean sweep in the limited-overs series, too.

Other Zimbabwe tours

Previous tour

South Africa 2004-05

Next tour

West Indies 2012-13

Next tour of New Zealand

 None scheduled

Members of the Test tour party  (15)

Opening batsmen  Hamilton Masakadza, Tino Mawoyo, Stuart Matsikenyeri.

Middle-order batsmen  Brendan Taylor, Regis Chakabva, Malcolm Waller.

Wicket-keeper:  Tatenda Taibu, Forster Mutizwa.

Spin bowlers:  Graeme Cremer Raymond Price.

Fast bowlers:  Elton Chigumbura, Kyle Jarvis, Shingirai Masakadza, Keegan Meth, Brian Vitori.

 

District representation  

 Castle Logan Cup teams

Msh : Mashonaland Eagles (6)

Mat : Matabeleland Tuskers (1)

Mid-W:  Mid-West Rhinos (3)

Moun : Mountaineers (3)

Sth : Southern Rocks  (2)

Taylor was not in the Logan Cup

Average age of team at time of first Test match

  (26 January 2012) :

    26  yrs  4 months

Key to type:

RHB Right-handed bat

RM  Right arm medium-paced bowler

RFM  Right-arm fast medium

OB   Off break

WK  Wicket-keeper

ODI   Member of squad for the ODI series

Test Appearances made before the tour

Taibu 27,   Price 21,  H Masakadza 18,  Taylor 13,  Matsikenyeri 8,  Chigumbura 7,  Cremer 6,  Jarvis 3,  Mawoyo 3,  Vitori 2,  Chakabva 1,  Waller 1,  SW Masakadza 0,  Meth 0,  Mutizwa 0.

Tour Officials

Selectors

Givemore Makoni (acting convenor of selectors),  Kevin Curran,  Wayne James.

Givemore Makoni was the chief executive officer of Southern Rocks franchise.

Selection

A twenty-man squad was named for a two-week training camp held in Harare from 4 January: 

Brendan Taylor, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Elton Chigumbura, Graeme Cremer, Kyle Jarvis, Hamilton Masakadza, Shingirai Masakadza, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Tinotenda Mawoyo, Keegan Meth, Forster Mutizwa, Njabulo Ncube, Raymond Price, Vusimuzi Sibanda, Tatenda Taibu, Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller.

Not included in squad:   Charles Coventry,  Craig Ervine.

Unavailable:  Chris Mpofu (lower back pain);  Tendai Chatara replaced him at the camp.

Tour Party Announced :  12 January 2012.

Not selected :   Vusi Sibanda because he played in Sydney grade cricket in Australia rather than in local cricket for mid-West Rhinos.   Zimbabwe Cricket considered only those players playing locally.

Time between selection and departure from Zimbabwe  

    4 days

(12 January  -  16 January)

Travel

Harare   Q Auckland

The tourists warmed up with a week-long camp.  Departure from Harare was around lunchtime on Monday 16 January. They flew via Johannesburg, Dubai and Brisbane.

The Zimbabwe team, expected to land in Auckland on Tuesday afternoon, did not arrive until Wednesday 18 January.  The side flew on to Gisborne on Friday for their three-day game and linked up with skipper Brendan Taylor who was already playing in New Zealand.

Time spent in New Zealand

    days

(18 January -

On-tour selection panel

Reinforcements

Fixtures/Results

§  ODI  Series

Å  Twenty20 internationals

† not first-class

.

Time spent in New Zealand before First Test: 

    8 days

(18 January -  26 January)

Test appearances on tour

Highlights

•   Regis Chakabva …

•   Tr

•   In the third ODI Zimbabwe-born substitute fielder Colin de Grandhomme made two catches and a run out for his adopted country New Zealand.

Tour Summary

Return to Zimbabwe

Auckland   Q  ?  Q Harare

Graeme Cremer was not in the one-day squad and returned to Zimbabwe, being replaced by Prosper Utseya

The team returned to Harare on approx 16 February 2012.

Time away from Zimbabwe

    31 days  

(16 January -  16 February)

Finances

Accounts of the tour

Postscript