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Zimbabwe, on Thursday, announced their squad for the upcoming home ODI series against Afghanistan, starting June 4 at the Harare Sports Club.
Zimbabwe and Afghanistan will first meet in the ODI series, which will be followed by the T20I fixtures. The ODI leg will be part of the World Cup Super League, where Afghanistan are currently at No. 5 with seven wins in nine games, while the hosts are in 12th position with three wins in 12 matches.
Zimbabwe’s highest-ranking bowler on Men’s ODI Rankings list, Blessing Muzarabani, has made a comeback to the national side. He was unavailable for the recent T20I series against Namibia due to his Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 stint but will now lead the pace attack against the Asian side.
Further, skipper Craig Ervine has been declared fit to participate in the three-match ODI series. Notably, Ervine had missed the final T20I against Namibia after testing positive for Covid-19. Ryan Burl, who had also tested positive and missed the final two games, is all set to return to the ODI setup.
However, senior cricketer Sean Williams will continue to be absent from the national side after Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) extended his compassionate leave to attend to personal matters. A few more notable absentees are Richard Ngarava and Wellington Masakadza, who are yet to recover from their respective injuries.
“Blessing Muzarabani, who was at the Indian Premier League since March, is back to lead the home team’s pace attack. Led by captain Craig Ervine, the side includes 11 of the players who were part of the squad for Zimbabwe’s last ODI series, away to Sri Lanka in January. Among those missing out are Sean Williams, who is still attending to personal matters after Zimbabwe Cricket granted him compassionate leave,” read the ZC release.
Here is Zimbabwe ODI Squad against Afghanistan:
Craig Ervine (captain), Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Tanaka Chivanga, Luke Jongwe, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Clive Madande, Wesley Madhevere, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Ainsley Ndlovu, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Donald Tiripano.