Sports
Zimbabwe done and dusted, bigger challenges ahead
by Rex Clementine
On occasions, Zimbabwe (or Rhodesia as earlier known) have turned the cricketing world upside down. In the 1983 World Cup, they beat a star-studded Australian side. Yes, an Australian side that had Lillee, Thomson, Yallop, Hookes, Wessels, Border and Marsh !
Zimbabwe themselves had some quality players on that occasion. They were captained by that brilliant strategist Duncan Fletcher, who later went onto coach England and India. They also had Dave Houghton, one of the finest batters to come from that country. Then there was Andy Pycroft, who was the Match Referee in the World Cup final in Ahmedabad in November. Kevin Curran was there too. His son Sam Curran is now an England star.
The most notable of them was off-spinner John Traicos. He had debuted for South Africa in 1970 but after South Africa were exiled from cricket due to apartheid, he switched alliance and represented Zimbabwe. That’s not the fun part. When South Africa were readmitted to Test cricket, he went back to play for them at the age of 45. Between his first Test and last Test, there were seven US Presidents from Richard Nixon to Bill Clinton while the Catholic Church had three Popes; Cardinal Montini, Cardinal Luciani and Cardinal Wojtyla.
Zimbabwe created another upset too when in 1992 World Cup they beat England. That Zimbabwe side had Flower brothers and chicken farmer Eddo Brandes, who famously claimed four wickets.
Zimbabwe in that World Cup nearly beat Sri Lanka too. Those days teams rarely chased down targets above 300. Sri Lanka went onto become the first team to do so.
In recent years as well, Zimbabwe have produced some quality talents like Neil Johnson and Murray Goodwin. However, the country suffered setbacks due to political upheavals and Robert Mugabe’s policies saw Zimbabwe being alienated by rest of the world and most white cricketing talents spread across other parts of the world.
Zimbabwe is a vast country unlike ours. It has a total area of 400,000 square kilometers. Their population is only 16 million whereas we have 22 million living in 65,000 square kilometers. The country is rich with natural resources but faced many setbacks during Mugabe’s era.
All fault of course is not Mugabe’s. When he wanted to reclaim the lands owned by white farmers, the British government of John Major had a deal to compensate white farmers. But once John Major’s Conservative Party was gone and Tony Blair’s Labour Party came in, the deal became null and void. And Mugabe was left with little choice. Like Nelson Mandela in South Africa, Mugabe was a freedom fighter but what he did in the latter years were quite despicable and unacceptable.
After economic instability, the country is recovering, and they aren’t doing too bad with the exchange rate being one US Dollar equal to 360 Zimbabwe Dollars.
Coming back to cricket, beating this Zimbabwe side is no big deal though. You keep hearing that this being a competitive opposition, but the truth of course is far from it. They have a very good left-arm seamer in Richard Ngarava while captain Sikandar Raza is a reliable all-rounder. Craig Ervine and Sean Williams are decent batters while the rest of them are making up the numbers.
Zimbabwe recently suffered home series defeats to Ireland and were even beaten by Namibia while being knocked out of this year’s T-20 World Cup after losing to Uganda. Sri Lanka should have cruised past this side but there were too many close games to their liking which sums up the standard of our cricket.
Barring the period between 2007 to 2011, our bowling has always lacked quality. Now the bowling not only lacks quality but among the top five batters hardly anyone bowls, which wasn’t the case earlier.
So, what the team did those days was to put a high premium on fielding. Now fielding has also collapsed and we are a laughing stock in white ball cricket. One good thing is that the new captain is stressing to put more emphasis on fielding. Upul Chandana has been handed the position of Fielding Coach on a temporary basis but it’s high time that he is made permanent in that position. He has been very loyal to SLC, and his innovative methods will help Sri Lanka to achieve desired results.
SLC must be commended for bringing in experts like Jonty Rhodes and Bharat Arun to lift our cricket standards. Rhodes obviously was the best fielder in our generation and players will learn quite a lot from him. However, unless individuals commit themselves, even if you bring Colin Bland from the dead we aren’t going to make improvements.
The upcoming series against Afghanistan will prove to be a different ball game altogether, particularly the white ball series. The Afghans are giving India a good run for their money at present and Sri Lanka will have to be at top of their game.
The Afghan series is followed by a tour of Bangladesh and that too will be quite challenging.
It’s a strange feeling. Sri Lanka toured Australia before the 1996 and 2007 World Cups and a lot of people say that those tours down under toughened the team up and helped them play their best cricket in the World Cup. Pity that we are saying a tour of Bangladesh will be tough these days. That’s how the cookie has crumbled.
South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has served a one-month ban, commuted from three months, for drug use during the SA20 earlier this year.
A statement issued by the South African Institute for Drug Free Sports (SAIDS) confirmed Rabada had failed a doping test on January 21, after the match between MI Cape Town and Durban Super Giants, and he was notified of the result on April 1 when he was in India for IPl 2025. On April 3, his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans (GT) said Rabada had returned to South Africa for personal reasons after playing only two matches this season.
According to SAIDS, Rabada has since participated in an education and awareness programme to prevent further substance abuse. He can resume playing immediately and could return to action as soon as Tuesday, when GT play Mumbai Indians (MI).
Rabada’s sanction is in line with the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) punishment for use of a recreational drug – including cannabis, cocaine, methamphetamine or diamorphine. A similar punishment was handed to New Zealand’s Doug Bracewell last year after he tested positive for cocaine during the Super Smash.
However, there are instances of longer suspensions, which are up to individual boards. Last year, Zimbabwe’s Wessley Madhevere and Brandon Mavuta were banned from playing for four months each and fined 50% of their salaries for three months after testing positive for a recreational drug. In that instance, Zimbabwe Cricket chose to impose a sanction longer than the WADA recommendations.
It is not expected that Cricket South Africa will impose further punishment on Rabada after it issued a statement on Saturday afternoon calling the incident “regrettable”. CSA is satisfied with Rabada’s “commitment to upholding professional standards” after he apologised through the South African Cricketers’ Association when news of his positive drug test broke at the weekend.
“I am deeply sorry to all those that I have let down,” Rabada said. “I will never take the privilege of playing cricket for granted. This privilege is much larger than me. It goes beyond my personal aspirations.”
With the matter considered closed, Rabada will be available for South Africa for the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia next month, where he is crucial to their chances. Rabada was South Africa’s leading wicket-taker in the 2023-2025 WTC cycle with 47 wickets at an average of 19.97.
However, not everyone considers the case to be as open and shut as CSA.
Speaking to SEN Radio, former Australia captain Tim Payne was critical of the statement initially issued by GT to explain Rabada’s absence from the IPL.
“It stinks. I don’t like this use around ‘personal issues’, and it being used to hide stuff that isn’t a personal issue,” Paine told SEN Radio on Monday. “If you have a professional sportsman that’s tested for recreational drugs during a tournament in which he is playing, that doesn’t fall under personal issues for me. That falls under you have broken your contract.
“That is not a personal issue, that is something that is happening in your personal life. Taking drugs – recreational or performance enhancing – is not a personal issue that can just be hidden for a month. A guy can be taken out of the IPL, moved back to South Africa, and we just let it slide under the rug. Then we will bring him back once he’s already served his ban.”
ESPNcricinfo contacted CSA and SACA officials multiple times after Rabada returned home from the IPL and were told he was dealing with a “personal issue”, while some officials claimed not to know anything about why he had come home.
The mighty haka echoed through the hills of Kandy as New Zealand’s Under-85 kg rugby team, a touring side from the land of the long white cloud, stamped their authority on Sri Lankan soil with a dominant 50–10 win in Nittawela. But the scoreline tells only half the story – this was a watershed moment for Sri Lankan rugby.
The clash marked the first leg of a groundbreaking two-match series, the first time a representative New Zealand rugby team has toured Sri Lanka. With a packed crowd and palpable buzz at Nittawela Stadium, the significance was not lost – this was more than a game; it was a celebration of rugby’s unifying power.
New Zealand’s precision, pace, and structure were evident from the kickoff. The visitors rolled through their phases like a well-oiled machine, opening the scoring through No. 8 Pasia Asiata and converting with aplomb. But what followed was more than just a try-fest – it was a masterclass in running rugby, with blistering counterattacks, clinical support lines, and seamless offloads lighting up the hill capital.
Sri Lanka, buoyed by home support, did have their moments. A well-executed rolling maul saw Dahan Wickramarachchi crash over, and veteran Nigel Ratwatte added five points off the tee. But for every local spark, the Kiwis had a storm brewing – Francis Morrison, Jarred Percival, and Eamon Reily led the charge as the men in black ran in tries with ruthless efficiency.
For Sri Lanka, the learning curve was steep, but the occasion was priceless. Hosting a side steeped in All Blacks culture, known for innovation and intensity, offers invaluable exposure and inspiration. This wasn’t just a rugby lesson – it was a statement that Sri Lanka belongs on the global rugby map.
As the teams gear up for the second leg, the scoreboard may favour the visitors, but the spotlight is firmly on Sri Lanka’s ambition. If the Tuskers can take heart and harness the experience, the long-term gain could far outweigh the immediate result.
Rugby fans across the island will be hoping this is just the beginning of more global giants setting foot on Sri Lankan turf.
by Carlos Van de Berg
Sri Lanka’s white-ball resurgence over the past 12 months has seen them punch above their weight and rise to fourth in the ICC rankings – a stunning turnaround for a side that not too long ago was scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Having missed out on qualification for this year’s Champions Trophy – finishing ninth at the cut-off and watching the bus leave without them – Sri Lanka have since tightened their shoelaces and hit the ground running. According to the ICC’s latest rankings update released in early May, Sri Lanka leapfrogged up the table thanks to landmark series wins against top-ranked India and reigning world champions Australia.
It’s been a remarkable comeback – like a team that once couldn’t buy a win now playing like seasoned campaigners. Credit must go to Sanath Jayasuriya, the swashbuckling former skipper who took over as Head Coach and made his intentions clear from ball one: raise the bar across all formats. From demanding peak fitness to lifting fielding standards out of the doldrums, Jayasuriya has instilled a no-nonsense culture, and the results are there for all to see.
Several players have raised their game, stepping up to the crease when the team needed it most. Pathum Nissanka blazed his name into the record books with the first-ever double hundred by a Sri Lankan in ODIs, while skipper Charith Asalanka became the rock in the middle order, often pulling the team out of the fire with match-winning knocks.
Maheesh Theekshana has spun a web around opponents to top the bowling charts, claiming the number one spot in ODIs. Meanwhile, Wanindu Hasaranga continues to be Sri Lanka’s golden goose – topping the all-rounder rankings and being hot property across franchise leagues worldwide.
In the T20 arena, the islanders have also upped the ante, climbing to seventh in the rankings and leaving Asian rivals Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan in their slipstream. Once champions of the shortest format, Sri Lanka now look like a team finding their groove again.
In Tests, too, there’s steady progress, with the team now placed sixth – a sign that the rebuilding phase is finally bearing fruit.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has rolled out the itinerary for the upcoming home series against Bangladesh. The bilateral contest kicks off with two Tests, the first at the picturesque Galle International Stadium from June 17, followed by the second Test at SSC starting June 25.
The ODI leg begins in Colombo on July 2, with the capital hosting the first two matches. The series then moves to Pallekele for the final one-dayer.
Kandy will set the stage for the opening T20I, before the caravan heads to Dambulla for the second. The third and final T20I will be played in Colombo, wrapping up what promises to be a closely-fought series.
From being down and nearly out, Sri Lanka have now thrown their hat back in the ring across all formats – and if this upward trajectory continues, the islanders might just be scripting another golden chapter in their cricketing folklore.
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