THE Zimbabwe netball team will face a stern test when they take on England, ranked third in the world, in their first warm up match at the 2023 Netball World Cup in Cape Town this morning.
Zimbabwe has four warm up matches and will play Barbados on July 25 before winding up with a date against Scotland and Wales, on July 26.
After an impressive debut at the 2019 World Cup which was held in England where they finished eighth, the Gems are making a second consecutive appearance at the global event where they are looking to do better.
But until now, the Gems have not managed to have high profile friendly matches in their preparations and have had to play the local men's teams.
“Those games (friendlies) are much needed for our girls so that they get the much needed exposure. It’s not about winning, but it’s about having the feel about the giants we are going to face come World Cup games,” assistant coach Tatenda Shinya told Standardsport.
“We would like to at least use all the players so that we do away with stage fright and ensure that they are ready for the big challenge. I am sure that all the girls are now eagerly waiting to be part of the team and show what they are capable of.
“We have been making use of friendlies with men’s teams during the course of our preparations — men are fast, strong, physically and mentally fit. We did our best and we managed to contain the games, winning against them showing that there is something good coming our way.
“The boys have been giving us the much needed competition when going for such big competitions especially this time around when we failed to have friendlies with other countries. Our girls are now fit and we just need to remain focused and stick to our goals,” Shinya added.
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The Netball World Cup will kick-off on July 28 and concludes on August 6 with 16 teams taking part.
Zimbabwe are in Pool A alongside defending champions Australia, Fiji and Tonga.
The team will play its first match against Australia on July 28 before playing Fiji the following day and conclude their group campaign against Tonga on July 30.
Zimbabwe Squad
Sharon Bwanali, Beaula Hlungwani, Felistas Kwangwa, Claris Kwaramba, Nalani Makunde, Sharleen Makusha, Nicole Muzanenhamo, Progress Moyo, Elizabeth Mushore, Joice Takaidza, Takadanaishe Zimusi, Ursula Ndlovu (Reserve), Paidamoyo Tinoza (Reserve), Tafazwa Mawango (Reserve)
