TTCB – News

Taibu: We want to stamp authority
February 24, 2010

By KERN RAMLOCHAN

ZIMBABWE captain Tatenda Taibu takes a knock in the nets of the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain. PHOTO BY ISHMAEL SALANDY

ZIMBABWE held their first training session yesterday at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain in preparation for the 2010 Digicel Home Series against the West Indies which starts with a Twenty20 match on Sunday.

Missing from the Zimbabwean practice session was influential opening batsman Brendan Taylor who was left in Johannesburg due to visa complications.

However, Taylor is scheduled to arrive at the Piarco International Airport tonight ruling him out of the warm-up match against the University of the West Indies Vice Chancellor’s XI tomorrow at the Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground in St Augustine.

The tourists had early an morning run followed by a gym session before a physical session on the Queen’s Park Oval outfield then closing with a net session.

Experienced wicketkeeper/batsman Tatenda Taibu explained that the team is confident of competing with the West Indies.

“We want to win the series and we really want to start playing hard cricket again. Zimbabwe cricket has been respected in ups and downs but we really want to stamp our authority now and start performing at every expectation.

“There is a lot of time that the guys have said that there is a lot of talent in Zimbabwe and we really have to put it to show now. It is not only about the talent, we have talked about the maturity, we need to blend the two and play some decent cricket,” said Taibu before the training session yesterday.

The former Zimbabwe captain acknowledged that the team needs to be consistent in all departments of the game if they are to secure a series win.

“I think cricket is not about one side or concentrating on one side but putting the three departments into play. We really have to field well, we really have to bowl well both our seamers and our spinners.

“The batting department we really have to play well especially in the middle period, knowing in the past we have struggled a little bit overs 15 up to 40. But now we have got a few guys with maturity playing in the middle period so we should really blend well with the first 15 overs with the middle period and the death,” said Taibu.

He explained that the team in young in age but not in experience and is confident that the veteran players will bring an added advantage. “Obviously I am one of the older guys were in the team and I have played with a lot of players, the likes of Heath Streak, Andrew Flower and now we have a young side and a maturing side.

“We have a young side in age but not really in games. We have the likes of Stuart Matsikenyeri, Chris Mopfu they have played a lot of games about 100, so we have got a bit of maturity in the team at the moment. So we are looking to play a lot of good cricket, it is good to be in the West Indies, I have been here before and it is great playing cricket here again,” said Taibu.

Zimbabwe bowling coach Heath Streak on Tuesday revealed that the players were coming off their domestic Twenty20 competition and is confident of providing fierce competition for the West Indies

“Twenty20 format in Zimbabwe was really great. The tournament was really organised there was some really good cricket played. Huge scores were scored, Hamilton Masakadza got a hundred.

“We had good bowling, death bowling and a mixture of spin; leg-spin, off-spin. It was really exciting allround, serious catches were taken so we want to try and take that confidence into this game we want to try and take that form into these games and play some exciting cricket,” said Taibu.

“Twenty20 is exciting it is not only about only explosive cricket it is about mental cricket as well, reading situations so it is exciting for the youngsters. Obviously we have youngsters both in Zimbabwe and West Indies so it will be exciting and Twenty20 is really exciting for the crowd and I am sure they will come in huge numbers to expect some good cricket,” he said.

Taibu who was Zimbabwe’s first black captain said that the team was recovering from jet lag after travelling for 36-hours and expressed his excitement about playing in the Caribbean once again.

“The guys are use to that (jet lag), we are professional cricketers we try to focus at the job at hand. Like I said earlier there is a lot of experience in the side. The guys have traveled a lot and they know how to get their bodies back into full functioning,” said Taibu.