There is a particular kind of quiet confidence that comes from having done the work. Not the loud, chest-beating kind. The settled kind. The kind that lets a team land in a host nation, endure gruelling back-to-back bus journeys across the country, and still walk onto a cricket field knowing exactly who they are and what they are capable of.
That is the Zimbabwe that has emerged from the group stage of this T20 World Cup.
Their cricketing team is known as ‘Chevrons’ in their country due to the ‘inverted v’ shaped pattern on their jerseys, which is inspired from the historic ruins at Great Zimbabwe Stone monument. And now the Chevrons have punched their ticket to the Super Eights — a feat that, for a cricket nation that has spent long stretches on the outside looking in at the sport’s top table, carries enormous weight.
It was not stumbled upon. Head coach Justin Sammons traces the blueprint back nearly two years, to conversations and decisions made long before a single ball was bowled on this tour.
“We are really excited and super chuffed that we have made it through the next round. That was the initial goal set out some 20 months ago and we are pleased that we have managed to achieve that,” Sammons told the H-Metro, a newspaper in Zimbabwe.
The destination was always the point. Getting here was the plan. Zimbabwe Cricket managing director Givemore Makoni concurred with the coach.
“This is not accidental – it is the result of a deliberate and disciplined process. We made a conscious commitment to fully honour the ICC Future Tours Programme, including scheduling as many as 10 Test matches in a year as part of rebuilding our team the right way,” he told H-Metro. “That sustained investment in meaningful international cricket has strengthened our structures, sharpened our competitiveness and culminated in World Cup qualification and performances that show Zimbabwe can compete with the best.”
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The coach Sammons has spoken of maintaining momentum and growing belief within the group.
“We are really excited about playing Sri Lanka. We are playing the host nation and the atmosphere should be great,” he said. “It is hugely important that we try and maintain that momentum that we have, to keep building belief and confidence within the group.”
The schedule has tested that belief physically. A four-hour road trip to Kandy, a turnaround, another four hours back — all while preparing to face international opposition. Most teams would creak under that. Zimbabwe absorbed it.
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What today’s clash against Sri Lanka means
This afternoon’s clash with Sri Lanka is not a dead rubber in the way outsiders might assume. Sammons has been direct: his side will not treat it as one. Changes to the lineup are likely, given the demands of the schedule, but the competitive intent will not be diluted.
“We definitely have to manage our players, especially as we prepare to enter the Super Eights. This period is very taxing on the players. We travelled four hours on a bus to Kandy and then four hours back to Colombo and play again the next day,” he told H-Metro. “It is quite taxing and we will look at managing our players, but we also want to put our best foot forward and won’t take anything for granted.”
Zimbabwe’s captain Sikandar Raza waves to the supporters during the T20 World Cup match between Ireland and Zimbabwe in Pallekele. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A team stepping into the Super Eights having been sharp, decisive and hungry in their final group game arrives in a fundamentally different mental space than one that coasted through. Zimbabwe want that edge.
The mountain ahead
India. West Indies. South Africa. Three names that, strung together, would once have prompted quiet acceptance from a Zimbabwe side. Not anymore. This is a squad that has stopped measuring success by participation. The next marker is competition. Then, perhaps, disruption.
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ZC managing director nailed the importance of the this Super Eight’s qualification, as it gives them direct entry to next T20 world cup. “Automatic qualification gives us stability and certainty in our long-term planning,” he said. It allows us to prepare thoroughly for Australia and New Zealand in 2028, knowing that we are already part of the global showpiece.”
Twenty months of groundwork has delivered a World Cup Super Eights berth. What the next few weeks deliver could redefine what is possible for Zimbabwean cricket entirely.
