Cricket: Zimbabwe to bring back former stars for first test

New Zealand seem likely to come up against a combination of the old and the new when they square off against Zimbabwe in the first test, starting Sunday.

Torn asunder over the past year by player boycotts, suspensions and self-imposed exiles, Zimbabwe are expected to welcome back a brace of former stars and a banned batsman when the side is announced this morning.

Reports out of Harare are tipping the return of seasoned internationals Stuart Carlisle and Craig Wishart after a year's absence and the likely call-up of batsman Brendan Taylor, who had been two months into a nine-month ban for indiscipline.

According to Zimbabwe's pro-Government Herald (which apparently receives the inside word ahead of other publications) Taylor wasn't expected to resume international cricket until next March after being suspended for skipping Zimbabwe A training in May.

The Herald, quoting "sources close to the selectors", claimed that the Mashonaland batsman had been included in a draft squad agreed during a meeting in Harare last Thursday. If the squad is rubber-stamped overnight, it should mean a test debut for Manicaland opening batsman Neil Ferreira, who impressed with his performances for Zimbabwe A against Pakistan A in May.

Ferreira, Carlisle and Wishart would apparently come in for Stuart Matsikenyeri and Barney Rogers, the openers during the tests against Bangladesh and South Africa early this year, and all-rounder Elton Chigumbura.

Injuries were likely to sideline seamers Douglas Hondo, Tinashe Panyangara, Mluleki Nkala, Edward Rainsford and Tawanda Mupariwa.

That would leave the Zimbabwe attack with a skeleton crew of former captain Heath Streak (scheduled to arrive back in Harare today after a stint with English county side Warwickshire), all-rounder Andy Blignaut, Christopher Mpofu and leg spinner Graeme Cremer.

The Herald, already embroiled in a row over receiving favourable treatment from local cricket authorities, claimed to have confirmed its story with Zimbabwe Cricket's communications office, and said the squad announcement was imminent.

New Zealand yesterday flew from Windhoeck to Harare to begin preparations for the test series proper and will have a final shakedown against a District XI tomorrow before considering their combination.

After the transport woes of the past week, they at least had some good news waiting for them when they arrived in Zimbabwe - they had managed to climb two placings on the world test rankings without even playing a match.

New Zealand jumped from seventh to fifth on International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings, leap-frogging Sri Lanka and Pakistan after all matches played before August 2002 were dropped out of the updated calculations.

The Black Caps are now just one point behind the fourth-placed Proteas, although, with a light test programme this summer, they won't get a chance to overtake them until the three-test series in South Africa in April.

In the latest one-day international rankings, New Zealand have been joined in third place by Pakistan but will jump clear on their own if they beat Zimbabwe in the first tri-series match in Bulawayo on August 24.

Australia top the rankings on 136 points, with Sri Lanka on 122 and New Zealand and Pakistan on 116.

The Herald's "probable" Zimbabwe test squad: Andy Blignaut, Stuart Carlisle, Graeme Cremer, Dion Ebrahim, Neil Ferreira, Hamilton Masakadza, Christopher Mpofu, Heath Streak, Tatenda Taibu (captain), Brendan Taylor, Craig Wishart: Keith Dabengwa (12th Man).