Test Bowling Options ( Spinners )
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 2:05 am
So far we have dissected Zimbabwe's opening and seam bowling options now for a look at spin bowling options. Poor batting in the longer formats have forced Zimbabwe to play an extra batsman in recent tests, this combined with the part time spin options of Williams, Raza and to a lessor extent Malcolm make it un-likely that Zimbabwe would play two spinners in the same test.
In saying this if another spinner was to perform well enough to be selected and we were to tour Bangladesh or play Afghanistan in the UAE a second spinner may come into consideration.
The Incumbent
Graeme Cremer: Cremer is the incumbent spinner and the captain in all three formats for Zimbabwe so it's un-likely we would see him not selected for the Windies series. Cremer is by no means the complete spinner as his record of 16 Tests 46 wickets @47.8 shows, but in his last three Tests he has taken 20 wickets @ 35 which shows he's improving. Cremer needs to work on his consistency as he bowls too many bad balls which in-turn forces him to set defensive fields which allows the batsmen to work him around easily and makes it hard for him to build pressure.
Cremer is more than capable and some of his deliveries in the recent test in Sri Lanka were 'un-playable' but he needs to produce more of those deliveries and less of the bad ones. One department where Cremer has a massive advantage over every other spinner is his batting, he has a Test 100 and has shown he is more than capable with the bat which is vital for Zimbabwe who have had issues batting in the longer format.
I also think Cremer needs to work on his 'defensive' bowling skills as well so he can be more effective on a pitch that isn't spinning that much. If Zimbabwe find themselves on a green pitch that is assisting the seamers Cremer needs to be able to 'hold up an end' and keep the pressure on whilst the fast men do the damage up the other end. When India toured for ODI's in 2015 Zimbabwe's seamers were doing a great job on helpful pitches but in every match once Cremer came onto bowl the runs flowed and the pressure released. Different format I know and Cremer was barely back from his 'hiatus' but if Cremer wants to be a quality Test spinner he needs to be able to perform in all conditions against all opposition.
The Contenders
Natsai M'shangwe: Seems to be the next in line due to his splendid Logan Cup season where he topped the Wickets charts, all that can be asked of a player trying to force their way into the Test team. M'shangwe was rewarded with a call up to Sri Lanka but didn't play the only Test, he did play the 1st 'Test' against the Emerging side from RSA but had a poor match with his 3-114 coming at 5.7 an over.
M'shangwe looked like a promising talent coming through the ranks and has done very well in the Logan Cup with his first class record of 206 Wickets @28.6 being quite impressive, but he has struggle to make the step up against quality sides in A Tours or the few internationals he has played. His 8 wickets in his only two tests against BD came @62 and he didn't look threatening at all during the tour, that was a long time ago and I haven't seen him bowl since so maybe he's improved since then. His batting does him no favours either.
Wellington Masakadza: Of all the Zimbabwe spinners Wellington is IMO the most 'all-rounded' of the lot as he seems to have the balance between 'attacking' and 'defending' sorted whilst the others are too far either way. Wellington has shown in his limited international career so far he can be a wicket taker whilst also keeping the runs down, 15 ODI wickets @ 25 with an economy of 4.26 reflects that.
Wellington also has very impressive First Class stats with 67 wickets @ 21.3 a piece showing he can be effective in the longer formats, although most of his wickets came at the beginning of his career as he hit the Logan Cup scene with a bang. Since then the domestic batsman have seemed to work him out and he struggled last season only taking 5 wickets in 3 matches as he struggled for opportunities with M'shangwe and even Kamungozi being preferred for the Goats.
Wellington may need to look to changing sides to possibly Mashonaland to get more opportunities as the Goats are packed for spinners and he should try and improve his batting, at the moment he is a genuine No.10 or 11 and with the incumbent Cremer being a good batsman Wellington will need to improve in this area to challenge for the spinner role. Wellington is still young and will get better with age as most left arm spinners do.
Tendai Chisoro: One of the more 'polarising' characters in Zimbabwe cricket at the moment Chisoro has done very well on the international scene in ODI cricket so far but seems out of the picture due to some discipline reasons. Chisoro has filled a number of roles in the ODI side even taking the new ball at times and bowling at the death, Chisoro is more of a 'defensive' bowler which is why he has been effective in ODI cricket so far, but Im not sure he would be so effective in tests.
71 First class wickets @41.3 is pretty ordinary when comparing to Wellington's average of 21 so it would be hard to argue Chisoro deserves a Test berth before Wellington, Chisoro can hold a bat which puts him ahead of all the other contenders but could bat no higher than No.9. The only scenario where I could see Chisoro being useful in a Test would be in the role of a 'holding bowler' where he could hold up an end whilst the seamers attack from the other end, much like South Africa has done with left armers like Boje, Henderson & Paul Harris.
John Nyumbu: At 32 years of age Johnny Nyumbu still has time to make a comeback to the Test side, but his time is running out. When Nyumbu took 5 on debut against South Africa it seemed Zimbabwe had unearthed a quality off spinner but his next two Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand ended wicket-less and after a very average Logan Cup season Nyumbu finds himself well down the pecking order.
Nyumbu seems to fallen behind Ainsley Ndlovu at the Tuskers as the No.1 spinner and will need to regain that post before challenging for a Test recall. Nyumbu is lucky there aren't many off spinners around in Zimbabwe at the moment so if the selectors were looking for one he would be the man, although it's debatable whether Raza is now a better off spinner. Nyumbu is also a very average batsman.
Long Shots
Ainsley Ndlovu: More of a player of the future Ndlovu has done very well for the Tuskers in the Logan Cup with 24 wickets @ 22 and seems to have passed John Nyumbu as the No.1 spinner there. Ndlovu struggled in the step up to Zim A and was in-effective against the emerging side from South Africa.
At 21 years old he has time on his side but will need to continue to improve and take his chances next time a Zim A chance comes up, also his batting so far has been very poor.
Tafadza Kamungozi: 'Fuddzie' is one of the more interesting spinners to come out of Zimbabwe due to his unique action, Zimbabwe has a long history of producing leg spinners with a 'classic' action but Kamungozi's action is much quicker and could be mistaken for a medium pacer or off spinner. Kamungozi is Zimbabwe's 'Mystery Spinner' without much mystery sadly as his lack of variety in his deliveries has hurt him. I actually think he could of been a good bowler if he learnt some nice variations or spent some time with a coach like Anil Kumble who could have shown him a thing or two.
124 wickets @34 isn't flash for a Logan Cup spinner and the fact he's 30 and he can barely hold a bat mean he's un-likely to add to his 1 Test appearance and the emergence of Wellington and Chisoro mean he will struggle to break back into the limited overs side as well.
Brendon Mavuta: A player of real promise and hope for the future for Zimbabwe former Under 19's World Cup captain Mavuta could be a star of the future. At 20 years old he has already Captained Zimbabwe at a Under 19's World Cup, played 5 first class matches and toured England with the Zim Rising Stars not a bad development path so far for a young Zimbabwe player considering the 'non-existent' pathway there has been for previous Under 19 players.
Mavuta plays for the Mid West Rhinos the same side as Cremer which is a massive bonus for him as he can learn off Cremer who has a wealth of experience playing all over the World, Mavuta's twitter profile pick is a 'selfie' of himself and Cremer which suggests there is already a tight bond between the two.
Like Cremer he is a leg spinner who can hold a bat and it would be 'advantageous' for Mavuta to continue to work on his batting so he can one day take over from Cremer as the leg spinner / lower order batsman role. At 20 years old he has time on his side and I doubt he would be brought into the Test side anytime soon but with hopefully a 'packed' home International summer this season Mavuta will get plenty of opportunities for the Rhinos whilst Cremer is captaining the national side or even see them play together would be great for Mavuta's development.
In saying this if another spinner was to perform well enough to be selected and we were to tour Bangladesh or play Afghanistan in the UAE a second spinner may come into consideration.
The Incumbent
Graeme Cremer: Cremer is the incumbent spinner and the captain in all three formats for Zimbabwe so it's un-likely we would see him not selected for the Windies series. Cremer is by no means the complete spinner as his record of 16 Tests 46 wickets @47.8 shows, but in his last three Tests he has taken 20 wickets @ 35 which shows he's improving. Cremer needs to work on his consistency as he bowls too many bad balls which in-turn forces him to set defensive fields which allows the batsmen to work him around easily and makes it hard for him to build pressure.
Cremer is more than capable and some of his deliveries in the recent test in Sri Lanka were 'un-playable' but he needs to produce more of those deliveries and less of the bad ones. One department where Cremer has a massive advantage over every other spinner is his batting, he has a Test 100 and has shown he is more than capable with the bat which is vital for Zimbabwe who have had issues batting in the longer format.
I also think Cremer needs to work on his 'defensive' bowling skills as well so he can be more effective on a pitch that isn't spinning that much. If Zimbabwe find themselves on a green pitch that is assisting the seamers Cremer needs to be able to 'hold up an end' and keep the pressure on whilst the fast men do the damage up the other end. When India toured for ODI's in 2015 Zimbabwe's seamers were doing a great job on helpful pitches but in every match once Cremer came onto bowl the runs flowed and the pressure released. Different format I know and Cremer was barely back from his 'hiatus' but if Cremer wants to be a quality Test spinner he needs to be able to perform in all conditions against all opposition.
The Contenders
Natsai M'shangwe: Seems to be the next in line due to his splendid Logan Cup season where he topped the Wickets charts, all that can be asked of a player trying to force their way into the Test team. M'shangwe was rewarded with a call up to Sri Lanka but didn't play the only Test, he did play the 1st 'Test' against the Emerging side from RSA but had a poor match with his 3-114 coming at 5.7 an over.
M'shangwe looked like a promising talent coming through the ranks and has done very well in the Logan Cup with his first class record of 206 Wickets @28.6 being quite impressive, but he has struggle to make the step up against quality sides in A Tours or the few internationals he has played. His 8 wickets in his only two tests against BD came @62 and he didn't look threatening at all during the tour, that was a long time ago and I haven't seen him bowl since so maybe he's improved since then. His batting does him no favours either.
Wellington Masakadza: Of all the Zimbabwe spinners Wellington is IMO the most 'all-rounded' of the lot as he seems to have the balance between 'attacking' and 'defending' sorted whilst the others are too far either way. Wellington has shown in his limited international career so far he can be a wicket taker whilst also keeping the runs down, 15 ODI wickets @ 25 with an economy of 4.26 reflects that.
Wellington also has very impressive First Class stats with 67 wickets @ 21.3 a piece showing he can be effective in the longer formats, although most of his wickets came at the beginning of his career as he hit the Logan Cup scene with a bang. Since then the domestic batsman have seemed to work him out and he struggled last season only taking 5 wickets in 3 matches as he struggled for opportunities with M'shangwe and even Kamungozi being preferred for the Goats.
Wellington may need to look to changing sides to possibly Mashonaland to get more opportunities as the Goats are packed for spinners and he should try and improve his batting, at the moment he is a genuine No.10 or 11 and with the incumbent Cremer being a good batsman Wellington will need to improve in this area to challenge for the spinner role. Wellington is still young and will get better with age as most left arm spinners do.
Tendai Chisoro: One of the more 'polarising' characters in Zimbabwe cricket at the moment Chisoro has done very well on the international scene in ODI cricket so far but seems out of the picture due to some discipline reasons. Chisoro has filled a number of roles in the ODI side even taking the new ball at times and bowling at the death, Chisoro is more of a 'defensive' bowler which is why he has been effective in ODI cricket so far, but Im not sure he would be so effective in tests.
71 First class wickets @41.3 is pretty ordinary when comparing to Wellington's average of 21 so it would be hard to argue Chisoro deserves a Test berth before Wellington, Chisoro can hold a bat which puts him ahead of all the other contenders but could bat no higher than No.9. The only scenario where I could see Chisoro being useful in a Test would be in the role of a 'holding bowler' where he could hold up an end whilst the seamers attack from the other end, much like South Africa has done with left armers like Boje, Henderson & Paul Harris.
John Nyumbu: At 32 years of age Johnny Nyumbu still has time to make a comeback to the Test side, but his time is running out. When Nyumbu took 5 on debut against South Africa it seemed Zimbabwe had unearthed a quality off spinner but his next two Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand ended wicket-less and after a very average Logan Cup season Nyumbu finds himself well down the pecking order.
Nyumbu seems to fallen behind Ainsley Ndlovu at the Tuskers as the No.1 spinner and will need to regain that post before challenging for a Test recall. Nyumbu is lucky there aren't many off spinners around in Zimbabwe at the moment so if the selectors were looking for one he would be the man, although it's debatable whether Raza is now a better off spinner. Nyumbu is also a very average batsman.
Long Shots
Ainsley Ndlovu: More of a player of the future Ndlovu has done very well for the Tuskers in the Logan Cup with 24 wickets @ 22 and seems to have passed John Nyumbu as the No.1 spinner there. Ndlovu struggled in the step up to Zim A and was in-effective against the emerging side from South Africa.
At 21 years old he has time on his side but will need to continue to improve and take his chances next time a Zim A chance comes up, also his batting so far has been very poor.
Tafadza Kamungozi: 'Fuddzie' is one of the more interesting spinners to come out of Zimbabwe due to his unique action, Zimbabwe has a long history of producing leg spinners with a 'classic' action but Kamungozi's action is much quicker and could be mistaken for a medium pacer or off spinner. Kamungozi is Zimbabwe's 'Mystery Spinner' without much mystery sadly as his lack of variety in his deliveries has hurt him. I actually think he could of been a good bowler if he learnt some nice variations or spent some time with a coach like Anil Kumble who could have shown him a thing or two.
124 wickets @34 isn't flash for a Logan Cup spinner and the fact he's 30 and he can barely hold a bat mean he's un-likely to add to his 1 Test appearance and the emergence of Wellington and Chisoro mean he will struggle to break back into the limited overs side as well.
Brendon Mavuta: A player of real promise and hope for the future for Zimbabwe former Under 19's World Cup captain Mavuta could be a star of the future. At 20 years old he has already Captained Zimbabwe at a Under 19's World Cup, played 5 first class matches and toured England with the Zim Rising Stars not a bad development path so far for a young Zimbabwe player considering the 'non-existent' pathway there has been for previous Under 19 players.
Mavuta plays for the Mid West Rhinos the same side as Cremer which is a massive bonus for him as he can learn off Cremer who has a wealth of experience playing all over the World, Mavuta's twitter profile pick is a 'selfie' of himself and Cremer which suggests there is already a tight bond between the two.
Like Cremer he is a leg spinner who can hold a bat and it would be 'advantageous' for Mavuta to continue to work on his batting so he can one day take over from Cremer as the leg spinner / lower order batsman role. At 20 years old he has time on his side and I doubt he would be brought into the Test side anytime soon but with hopefully a 'packed' home International summer this season Mavuta will get plenty of opportunities for the Rhinos whilst Cremer is captaining the national side or even see them play together would be great for Mavuta's development.
Don't you mean the seamer, Capmbell Light..?