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| Press Releases |
Howzat!Local fans bowled over by T20 extravaganzaBy Nyasha Dhliwayo OODLES OF media hype, up-tempo music blaring from giant speakers, energetic dancers and hard hitting edge of your seat action all combine in the shorter funkier version of cricket. Jokingly referred to as cricket on fast forward, Twenty20 cricket alternatively known as T20 has over the past few years captured the imagination of sporting fans across the world. For nine action-packed days this February five Zimbabwean franchises and one Namibian invitational side battled over 17 matches in the inaugural Stanbic Bank Twenty20 Series. In a sterling example of cooperation between sports administrators and corporate sponsors Delta Beverages and a number of other prominent corporate entities brought the Twenty20 spectacle to Harare Sports Club. Volatile weather could not stop what organizers estimated to be a record 7 500 people from watching Manicaland Mountaineers challenge Mashonaland Eagles in the Saturday final. In a rare display of solidarity across all social demographics, a diverse crowd cheered on the two teams in a carnival atmosphere. Some local newspapers later speculated the record turnout figure was unprecedented in over a century of Zimbabwean cricket. For their emphatic 9 wicket trouncing of Eagles, Mountaineers were crowned the inaugural winners, walking away with a cheque of US$35 000. The accolades did not stop there as Mountaineers skipper Hamilton Masakadza was named top batsman and Man of the Tournament, pocketing US$750. The formerly out-of-sorts national team player also registered the highest score of 102 in an innings. Further to this Masakadza was involved in the highest partnership of the tournament after sharing 179 runs with the talismanic Tatenda Taibu in a match against Southern Rocks. Earlier on Namibia’s Desert Vipers overcame Matebeleland Tuskers in the third place play off. Throughout the week international players like Rikki Vessels and Ian Harvey (Australia), Ollie Rayner and Darren Stevens (England), Greg Smith (South Africa) and Steve Tikolo (Kenya) strutted their stuff. Mashonaland Eagles English coach Chris Silverwood complemented the international mix. On the sidelines a large contingent of local and international journalists provided extensive coverage of events on the field. Stakeholders hailed the tournament for breathing life into the domestic game and as a major step towards restoring Zimbabwean cricket to its former glory. The series rejuvenated crowd interest that had waned with the national team’s flagging fortunes over the past few years. Sports pundits credit the high velocity format of Twenty20 for creating a more athletic and entertaining form of cricket. Speaking at the launch of the tournament, Matebeleland Tuskers coach Robin Brown said that in Twenty20 cricket the playing field was level. “It’s anyone’s game…” the former national team coach said. Twenty20 was originally introduced in the United Kingdom in 2003 as a livelier form of the game for non-traditional spectators. A typical game is completed in about three and half hours, with each innings lasting around 75 minutes, thus bringing the game closer to the timespan of other popular team sports. The “Twenty” concept is derived from the fact that each team has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. The next Twenty20 tournament is scheduled to take place between August and September. |
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