Sikandar Raza spoke about not resting on the laurels after Zimbabwe secured Super Eights qualification and led by example on Thursday as his cameo worth 45 off 26 in chase marred Sri Lanka’s otherwise perfect group stage run. Both teams had already qualified to the next round heading into this fixture but had an opportunity to get another solid workout in before the Super Eights where fixtures and top oppositions come at warp speed. Sri Lanka would’ve thought they had enough on a sluggish Colombo surface with 178/7, until Raza flipped the narrative in a five-over period.
The mood in their camp is jolly but captain Raza had stressed that there is more for his team to achieve in this marquee 20-team tournament. “When Zimbabwe set out, we didn’t set a goal just to qualify,” the lynchpin said in the post-match press conference. “We’ve got other goals to achieve. Yes, Super Eight is clearly a tick in the box, but it’s certainly not the whole box we set out for. Everybody remains committed and focused on what’s still ahead.”
“One of the goals we set out for – without telling you all of them – was to bring more recognition and respect to our country. Whatever has happened in the past has happened, but this group has been together for a long time and we’ve gone about our business with honesty and integrity towards the game and towards each other. To see people now taking notice of Zimbabwe and speaking about us in a respectful manner is very humbling and pleasing. Hopefully we can keep writing our own history so that when people talk about Zimbabwe cricket, they show a bit more respect,” he added.
“When we were told we had to play the sub-regional Qualifier B in Kenya, I remember saying to the squad: either we feel sorry for ourselves or we understand the reality – and the reality is it is because of us we are in this mess. And only we can get ourselves out of it,” Raza said.
Zimbabwe aren’t an overnight success. “We all unanimously agreed. We laid down a plan. We knew there would be bad games and criticism, but if we stayed true to the plan, trusted each other and created a better culture, we’d be fine. To see the result after almost two years is certainly very pleasing,” he added.
“We are certainly very humbled, very grateful and very pleased at the same time,” Raza expressed. “The boys are enjoying it, rightly so, but we’ve got another game in less than 48 hours, and that includes a travelling day as well. We’ll have a little celebration in the changing room, but once we leave, we’ve got another game to prepare for. Our focus will shift pretty quickly. For now, everybody’s happy, honoured and grateful – all those feelings.”
