MUMBAI: Zimbabwe is the home of the most powerful sports administrator in the world: Kirsty Coventry, head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). That in itself feels like a minor win for a country not accustomed to the spotlight for the right reasons over the last few decades.
Hyperinflation, financial sanctions and political upheaval have routinely dominated the discourse. That all of those things also applied to the cricket team meant they weren't even permitted to dream. Even when they took two steps forward, it would be followed by three steps behind. Snakes and ladders but a lot of snakes and not enough ladders.
Their stock was so far back their path to this World Cup began at the sub-regional qualifier in Kenya in October 2024. They wiped the floor with their competition. What began then reached a crescendo in Sri Lanka over the last two weeks as they took out Australia and the co-hosts to advance to the Super Eights.
By any measure, it's already one of the stories of the World Cup, notwithstanding the big loss at the hands of West Indies on Monday. Central to this story of spreading hope, rejuvenation and belief is Blessing Muzarabani. Built like a watchtower (6'6"), the 29-year-old has 11 wickets already to his name at the World Cup.
It's easy to see why. He has a burst of pace and hurries batters, something he did multiple times against the West Indies under the illustrious Wankhede lights on Monday. His action is very repeatable and he has subtle changes of pace making him a modern seamer. What makes him extra special in this format is he bowls the hardest overs -- up front in the powerplay and in the death. His natural advantage -- thanks to his height -- means he can also extract maximum juice of surfaces. Something coach Justin Sammons said after the West Indies game.
"His natural attributes in terms of his height, that's most definitely his biggest strength," he said. "I think he's been really good in the control of his length and his line, so he's not given the batters too many free, easy boundary balls. If they look for the boundary, there's an element of risk that they've had to take, So I think he's been really good there in that regard."
But this isn't just a story of what Muzarabani is able to do on the ground. This is a story of a kid who made good on his talent despite the obstacles placed in front of him. It's also tempting to say his story is comparable to the Zimbabwean cricket tale. Financial hardship, asking for a chance, hope and, now, reaching for the stars.
In an interview with thecricketmonthly in April 2021, he had spoken about the hardships. "I wasn't privileged," he had said. He trained without decent shoes, couldn't afford a mobile phone but only kept going because 'I was curious about the game'. "It was really tough immersing myself into the culture at first, because sometimes you mingle with the rich kids and poor kids together. As a kid, that affects you a huge deal. You see the kind of shoes (rich kids) wear, and you want them too, but there's no way I could afford them. There are many small things like that which can sometimes make you uncomfortable, and the only way you'll survive that is [through] love for the game."
These days, the tall pacer is a well known name among the cricketing world. In 2022, he was a net bowler for Lucknow Super Giants. Post this year's World Cup, he will be featuring for Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). "Our recruitment is heavily data-driven," the franchise told this daily, "but not in a surface-level way. We go deeper than basic numbers. We analyse skill-types, match-ups, role impact, and most importantly, who can genuinely be a point of difference.
"When we evaluated a potential point of difference, Muzarabani was one of the bowlers on our shortlist. His height alone gives him a unique release point and bounce profile that very few batters are comfortable against, especially in T20 cricket where unfamiliar angles can be decisive."
United, three time PSL champs, liked his profile a lot. They also liked his performance against Pakistan batters.
"Beyond the technical side, he brings elite professionalism and discipline, which are qualities we place enormous value on as a franchise. And of course, his record against Pakistan batters speaks for itself. When performance data, tactical uniqueness, and professionalism align — that’s exactly the kind of player we want."
Against India at Chennai on Thursday, Muzarabani's height and pace could well be a point of difference at Chennai. India will hope they can get him away but the Zimbabwean is in a hurry to own the stage. That itself is something worth celebrating after decades of tumult and turmoil.
Just ask Coventry.
