T20 World Cup 2024: In a bid to qualify for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024, Zimbabwe Cricket has made some major changes to their team. In a Zimbabwe Cricket board meeting, the board appointed star all-rounder Sikandar Raza as their new captain of T20Is. They have also changed the selection panel.
Zimbabwe have recently suffered a 3-2 T20I series loss to Namibia and will be playing the Africa qualifier to qualify for the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies. The Chevrons played the 20-over World Cup in 2022 but finished last in their Super Six group after topping the first round stage. This meant Zimbabwe did not get the automatic qualification and needed to play the upcoming qualifier for a place in the main draw of the tournament.
Appointing Raza as the T20I captain leaves the Chevrons with a split captaincy. They have Craig Ervine as the ODI and Test skipper. "All-rounder Sikandar Raza has been named as Captain of Zimbabwe’s T20 international team in one of the changes announced by the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) Board after its meeting held in Victoria Falls on Saturday," Zimbabwe Cricket wrote in a statement.
Zimbabwe have retained the head coach Dave Houghton but have changed the selection panel. The Men’s Selection Panel will now have three members, with David Mutendera remaining as Convener and joined by Houghton and Elton Chigumbura. "The Men’s Selection Panel will now have three members, with David Mutendera remaining as Convener and joined by Houghton and Elton Chigumbura," ZC added.
Notably, there are no changes to the women's cricket arena. "There are no changes to the women’s cricket set-up, although the Board will review the tenures of Zimbabwe Senior Men’s National Team Head Coach Gary Brent and Captain Mary-Anne Musonda after the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier set for Uganda," the board confirmed.
