Zimbabwe Women's To Tour USA For Historic White-ball Series

Zimbabwe women's to tour USA for historic white-ball series (Image Source: IANS)

Grand Prairie Stadium: Zimbabwe Cricket has announced that its women’s team will embark on a historic tour of the United States of America (USA) for a limited-overs series starting this week.

The landmark tour – Zimbabwe women’s first-ever visit to the USA for a bilateral or any other cricket series – features three T20Is and two ODIs scheduled to run from April 25 to May 3 with all matches set to be played at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Texas.

The two sides will start off with the T20I leg of the tour, with matches lined up for April 25, 27 and 29. These will be followed by the ODI series scheduled for May 1 and 3.

"This historic engagement comes as part of ZC’s unwavering commitment to increasing international playing opportunities for the Zimbabwe Women’s national team across both formats of the game," the Zimbabwe Cricket said in a statement.

Zimbabwe women and USA women last faced off in October 2024 when the Americans toured Harare for an ODI series.

Speaking ahead of the team’s departure, Zimbabwe women’s head coach Walter Chawaguta described the tour as an important stepping stone for his side.

"The US tour is a start to a steady build-up towards the Ireland series in July which will give us a gauge in terms of where we are ahead of the FTP next year. It also kickstarts our journey towards the Africa qualifiers later this year," he said.

For the upcoming series in Texas, ZC have named a balanced 15-member squad that blends experienced campaigners with exciting young talent.

Veterans such as Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Josephine Nkomo, Modester Mupachikwa, Precious Marange, Loreen Tshuma, Chiedza Dhururu and Nomvelo Sibanda will provide valuable experience and leadership.

They are joined by some of the country’s brightest rising stars, including youth prodigies Kelis Ndhlovu and Beloved Biza.

The squad also features promising talents Adel Zimunu, Natasha Mthomba and Lindokuhle Mabhero, as Zimbabwe Women continue to build for the future.

"The squad was selected to reflect a ‘bigger picture’ mindset, which is a drive to widen our player base and inject a healthy dose of competition for spots within the player group," Chawaguta said.

Zimbabwe squad: Biza Beloved, Chipare Francesca, Dhururu Chiedza, Mabhero Lindokuhle, Makusha Tendai, Marange Precious, Mthomba Natasha, Mugeri-Tiripano Chipo, Mupachikwa Modester, Ndhlovu Kelis, Nkomo Josephine, Pasipanodya Runyararo, Sibanda Nomvelo, Tshuma Loreen, Zimunu Adel.

"The squad was selected to reflect a ‘bigger picture’ mindset, which is a drive to widen our player base and inject a healthy dose of competition for spots within the player group," Chawaguta said.

Article Source: IANS