ZIMBABWE TOUR OF PAKISTAN 2020

Back at it, Brendan Taylor raring to test Pakistan

by   •  Published on
"I think we have a good opportunity to test Pakistan here and I'm looking forward to it."
"I think we have a good opportunity to test Pakistan here and I'm looking forward to it." © AFP

The toughest challenge former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor was up against during the COVID-19 enforced lockdown was home-schooling two of his four kids. It was a test of patience fronting up to a laptop instead of a bowler for substantial hours at end, which he couldn't wrap his head around. He even sought assistance from a friend well-versed with computers for it to fulfil his responsibility as a parent in these times where the definition of 'normal' has evolved.

Although Zimbabwe was impacted comparatively lesser to other parts of the world, with the death-count nearing 250 only now, but cases just in the early thousands then, sporting facilities, were inoperable. Lucky for Taylor, Zimbabwe's lockdown wasn't as severe with the option of several outdoor activities still accessible. However, above all, it was just the time, he, as an international cricketer, got to spend at home with the family was priceless.

"I was mostly at home, doing some home schooling; it was totally new, but something that was really important for us as parents to get involved with," Taylor tells Cricbuzz from Rawalpindi, where Zimbabwe are in a bio-secure bubble ahead of their limited-overs series. "Playing cricket with the kids in the garden, swimming ... spending time where we wouldn't get to do that as much being on the road and being committed to our jobs... It was a good time for the family. I tried to make the most of it. We couldn't use any cricket facility, which was tough, but could play a fair bit of golf, but just trying to adjust to becoming a teacher at home was very difficult," he chuckles.

It was the longest Taylor, like most others, had spent away from a cricket field. It was in March when Zimbabwe were involved in a tussle with Bangladesh. They were outplayed comprehensively, winless across formats then. Zimbabwe's FTP for 2020 was their busiest yet, with series against Ireland, Afghanistan, India, England, Netherlands and Pakistan. While most of them are postponed, the squad is raring to go against in their three-match ODI and T20 series against Pakistan.

"This year was supposed to be our busiest on the FTP and would've been the busiest year of my career. It was very exciting, and to have the opportunity taken away from you, was bitterly disappointing. But there are bigger things to worry about and cricket wasn't really a priority a few months ago where people were struggling and being severely affected by it all. I'm hoping that we can regroup and get these tours played. I think that has to happen, but when it will, I don't know.

"We are excited and raring to go. It's been a testing time for everyone involved all around the world. Hopefully, it's blowing over. It's still obviously lingering around, but with all the necessary precautions taken finally, we can get back out there. I haven't prepared so well as an individual and a group in a long time. I think we have a good opportunity to test Pakistan here and I'm looking forward to it."

Zimbabwe had trained for 4-5 weeks in Harare before the two weeks in Pakistan leading up to the tournament. While the onus was on the players to stay fit despite the facilities under shutters, they had a trainer taking them through various fitness regimes via a Zoom call four times a week to help them stay on track.

"The only preparation is that you can work on your fitness, and on the ground, on your skills. Training has been good, we've been pretty productive and had very intense training sessions. You're very much secluded from the rest of the hotel or the rest of the ground. You're very much in your own space with your teammates. It's not too unbearable; it's manageable," says Taylor of the bio-secure bubble. Zimbabwe had a week of quarantine in Zimbabwe before heading into the bubble in Rawalpindi. The squad has an entire floor in the hotel to themselves; they've got their own dining room floor, their own gym, to bring easement.

"It's just a matter of a small adjustment and we're still pretty new to it so it's now a part of the process. We're just trying to embrace that. Fortunately, we're in a comfortable hotel and Pakistan Cricket Board have been pretty hospitable and made it a lot easier than we thought it would be."

Zimbabwe's challenge in the bubble has been just a shadow of what some of the other teams have had to endure given the duration of their tour, which spans just ten days. Teams like West Indies and Pakistan that had toured England a couple of months earlier, had months in the bubble, bringing to the fore the mental challenges of adapting.

"You have to feel for other teams...West Indies, England, Pakistan ... When you're doing 2-3 months, that's going to start to get a little testing. We've only done two weeks so there's a lot of difference there. In time, it's a valid point and something needs to be done about it. As far as the Zimbabwean team is concerned in terms of the duration of the bubble, it's manageable, but I do have concerns regarding long-term.

"It's going to challenge the team dynamic a little bit more. The team camaraderie has got to be spot-on. That just comes with the skill of being a leader and a head coach to keep the players motivated. I think the motivation will always be there but I mean, there are players with families and stuff now so the mental ground will be challenging for all involved. It'll take a true leader to try and ease that burden."

With the tour kicking off with three One-Day Internationals, part of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League, which serves as a direct qualification tournament for the WC in 2023, for the teams that finish as the top-eight sides.

"There's some real sort of value on that now. I'm not saying there's no value every time you walk out there and represent your country, but there's a certain drive now ... there's some added pressure to get those wins and we understand the importance of victories. We have everything to play for and we've prepared the way we want to prepare and have really taken ourselves out of our comfort zones to try and achieve that.

"We've spoken a lot about trying to buy into a more of a winning formula and that would be trying and playing a bit more attacking cricket. Sometimes you're probably going to fail in trying to achieve scores of say 300 that keep you in the game. But you know, not being left wondering what we could've achieved. Each individual taking responsibility as to what their role is and sticking to that. And if we do that, we're capable of beating the best teams in the world and we've done that before. It's just the consistency of doing that has been lacking. So there's been an emphasis on that."

This is Taylor's third tour to Pakistan. He travelled to Pakistan first as a 19-year-old in 2004-05 which was an "eye-opener" for him and then in 2008. He was playing in England in 2015 and missed out on that tour, but returns after 12 years to the country.

"My role now is different to what it was then. I try and offer bits and pieces here and there. I try and be not an overload of information, but just be on standby for support. There's a very much open-door policy in my room and I try to make an effort each day; just try and spend time with the younger guys to find out where they are mentally and how their training is going. I try and watch as much as I can and see what I can give back. It's not just about being a player now, but what I can offer. You want to keep it simple, but at the same time try and get the best out of the players."

Taylor handpicked Blessing Murazabani, who returned from three years in England, Wesley Madhevere and Ryan Burl as ones to watch out for during the tour. "It's good to have Blessing back after losing out on Kyle Jarvis due to injury ... the big tall fast bowler. There's Wesley Madhevere who had a good debut series back in March in Bangladesh. He's a talented batsman, bowls offspin and is an unbelievable fielder. He's the full package. And then there's Ryan Burl who bowls good legspin, he's a powerful hitter down the order and is a good fielder too."

While Zimbabwe have the arsenal to put up a fight against Pakistan, the "exciting prospects" will need to deliver to their potential. Pakistan will take confidence from the fact that they have lost just one game in 19 ODIs across six previous home series. But for Taylor, it's not just playing cricket, but the joy that it can bring to his fellow countrymen that matter most, in these hard and testing times.

"At the end of the day, coming from a cricketer's perspective, we all want to get out there and play the game we love. But there are people out there losing their lives, have their lives as they know it destroyed, and we're just playing a game. So, I mean, you've got to put all that aside and prioritise keeping the pandemic down and try and save a few lives. It was a real eye-opening experience and a sad one. But it's nice to start seeing some sort of progress with the cricket and hopefully, it'll be putting some smiles back on the faces of people back at home who have been starved of sport for so long."

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