Maqonda Ndlovu
Eagles coach Pierre de Bruyne says preparations for the upcoming T20 Castle Light series against Zimbabwe have been good due to the high-quality matches played during the Richelieu Twenty20 (T20) franchise tournament last month.
Speaking to New Era Sport yesterday, de Bruyne said he was pleased to get the T20 international series with five games.
“The quality of your opponents is crucial when you are preparing for World Cup qualifiers, and we can’t ask for better competition than Zimbabwe at this time, as they have phenomenal players on their side. It is going to be a tough competition for us,” he said.
He added that he was expecting them to bring a very strong side with senior players in the mix, compared to the side that the Eagles beat 3-2 in Bulawayo in 2022.
De Bruyne said having Zimbabwe play in Namibia is history in the making, as they are a test-playing nation.
On his team selection for the series, de Bruyne said he will not tink a lot with the team, as he wants to consolidate players within their roles and allow them to get settled.
“We want to use the series to prepare the players for the World Cup qualifiers and see where they will fit in.
My goal is to get players settled into their roles. There might be situations where we will need to rotate, and rotating bowlers in a long series like this is also important to keep them fit and fresh,” he said.
Namibia will host Test Nation Zimbabwe from 24 to 30 October in Windhoek for the first time.
The two nations will play five T20 cricket matches at Wanderers and United cricket grounds, according to a media release that Cricket Namibia made available to this publication yesterday.
“The highly anticipated Castle Lite Series will set the stage for an electrifying tournament between the Eagles and the Chevrons, Zimbabwe’s national men’s team. From 24 to 30 October, cricket enthusiasts will shift their focus to these African giants as they play five T20Is in what promises to be edge-of-the-seat cricket games at Wanderers and United Sports Ground,” the statement said.
Fixtures:
Richelieu Eagles vs. Zimbabwe
Tuesday, 24 October, 14h00 at Wanderers
Wednesday, 25 October, 14h00 at Wanderers
Friday, 27 October, 14h00 at United
Sunday, 29 October, 11h00 at United
Monday, 30 October, 14h00 at United