IPL 2018: Zimbabwe cricketers that could have been part of this edition

Zimbabwean cricket is under crisis due to poor administration and country’s internal politics. Over the last few years, many cricketers have been suspended, banned and had premature retirements. Lack of financial support is also a major concern for its decline. Despite all this, Zimbabwe has managed to put up decent performances every now and then. They have managed to beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka 3-2 in the ODI series and almost won the one-off Test match.

When it comes to IPL, Tatenda Taibu is the only Zimbabwe cricketer to play in the IPL. He was picked up Kolkata Knight Riders in the inaugural edition and managed to feature in only 3 games. He couldn’t make much impact and went unsold in the next season. Similarly, Brendan Taylor was bought by Sunrisers as a backup for wicket-keeper Naman Ojha in the 2014 season but never got a chance to play. Even in this year’s auction none of the Zimbabwean players managed to attract the franchise owners.

However, there are 3 promising cricketers from the current national team that could have been part of this year’s IPL:

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#3 Sean Williams

Sean Williams is one of the most experienced players in the current Zimbabwe team. The 31-year-old made his ODI debut in 2005 and since then he represented his country in 116 ODI’s with a decent average of 31 and a healthy strike-rate of 82. Predominantly considered to be a batting all-rounder, his slow left-arm spin has been of the valuable asset to his team.

His sole ODI century came against Afghanistan at home in a 5-match series. Chasing a target of 246 in the allocated 50 overs, Sean Williams stroked a masterful 102 of 124 balls. Despite this effort, Zimbabwe lost to Afghanistan by 73 runs.

In T20s, the all-rounder has been part of 24 games with a strike-rate of 122. With three 50s to his name, his notable contribution was against Pakistan when he scored 58 off 32 balls, helping his side to reach a solid total of 175. Although his team ended up on the losing end, he was praised by critics for his attacking stroke-play

#2 Brendan Taylor

Brendan Taylor has been the most consistent and stand-out player for Zimbabwe for over a decade. The right-handed wicket-keeper batsman holds the record for most number of ODI centuries for Zimbabwe.

In the 50-over format of the game, Brendan Taylor has 10 ODI centuries and 34 fifties to his name with a healthy strike-rate of 75 and an average of 35.79.

The classy batsman has single-handedly won many games for his team with the bat. Let us look at two outstanding knocks in his career:

Last ball six of Mashrafe Mortaza

In 2006, Bangladesh toured Zimbabwe for a 5 match ODI series. In the 3rd ODI, batting first Bangladesh put up a fighting total of 237/8 in 50 overs. In reply, Zimbabwe were struggling at 151-7 with 86 to get off 67 balls.

Brendan Taylor along with tail-ender Tawanda Mupariwa stitched together a partnership of 81 runs in 66 balls to bring the target to touching distance. With 5 needing off the last ball, Brendan Taylor smashed a low full toss of Mashrafe Mortaza over the long-on fence for a six, thus pulling off an improbable victory for his team.

A win over Australia in 2007 T20 World cup

This would be regarded as an upset in T20I history. Electing to bat first Australia struggled its way to a mediocre total of 138/9 in 20 overs. Brendan Taylor opened the batting and Zimbabwe had a good start to the innings but kept losing wickets post the power-play. Taylor along with Hamilton Masakadza had a 53-run partnership for the 5th wicket before Masakadza was dismissed in the 19th over.

Still, 16 runs were required off 9 balls. With 4 needing off the last 2 balls, a fuller delivery of Nathan Bracken clipped the pads of Brendan Taylor and raced away to the fine leg boundary. This marked a remarkable victory for Zimbabwe and an upset of sorts. For his 45-ball 60, he was awarded Man of the Match.

Brendan Taylor was purchased by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the seventh edition (2014) of Indian Premier League. He was primarily purchased as a substitute for wicket-keeper Naman Ojha. However, the Zimbabwean never got a chance to play. He went unsold in the seasons thereafter.

#1 Sikandar Raza

Sikandar Raza is a Pakistani-born Zimbabwean Cricketer. He made a name for himself for his batting and the ability to hit sixes with ease. He made his ODI debut in the year of 2013 against Bangladesh at home. He started his career as a middle-order batsman and was later promoted as an opener. His maiden ODI century came against Afghanistan at home in 2014, when he scored 141 off 133 balls, which helped his side to a convincing victory.

However, his best batting performance was in the tour of Pakistan, when he scored a swashbuckling 100 off just 84 balls against a potent bowling attack consisting of Mohammad Sami, Anwar Ali, Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah. Although Zimbabwe ended up on the losing end, this knock by Sikandar Raza caught the eye of many and he was a star to reckon with.

With consistent performances in shorter formats of the game, Chittagong Vikings bought Sikandar Raza in the 5th season (2017) of Bangladesh Premier League. In one of the games, he scored a blistering 95 of 45 balls, which powered Chittagong to a mammoth total of 211 in 20 overs against Sylhet Sixers. This knock helped his side to a comfortable 40-run victory and was rightly awarded Man of the Match. He was also the man of the tournament in recently concluded ICC World Cup qualifiers.

Unfortunately, Sikandar Raza went unsold in the 2018 Vivo IPL Auctions as no franchise showed interest in buying him.