ZIMBABWE Emerging's hammering at the hands of South Africa Emerging in the first four-day Test match at Queens Sports Club has raised alarm bells on the direction that the game is taking.
A Zimbabwe Emerging team which is a mixture of experience and youth was hammered by a youthful South Emerging side by an innings and 186 runs in a game that ended on the first session of day four.
Batting first, the hosts had a dismal showing at the top before half-centuries from Brandon Mavuta, Alastair Frost and Ernest Masuku restored some parity to their innings. The trio guided Zimbabwe Emerging to a first-innings score of 216 runs in 69,3 overs.
However, South Africa Emerging would go on to score a mammoth 568/6 in their first innings. The visitors batted 136,1 overs.
Faced with a tall order going into the second innings, Zimbabwe Emerging were bowled out for just 184 runs in 80,2 overs.
Following their dismal show in the first match, Zimbabwe Emerging head coach Steve Mangongo was left a frustrated man. He bemoaned his team's power display and believed that the showing is a cause for concern.
He added that they missed all the fundamentals of red-ball cricket in the first game.
Mangongo said there should be worry if a team comprising of experienced players loses like that against a genuinely emerging side.
"It is very disappointing that we got smashed by a genuine emerging squad. To me, that is the point, which we lost to a genuine emerging squad. We are a mixture of experience and a few emerging players so for us to be outclassed by a genuine South Africa emerging squad is a big cause for concern. We didn't have our fundamentals right, we dropped nine catches in the first innings when they were batting and they amassed 565 runs.
"That is not acceptable at this level, professional level, we've got professional and franchise players, players who have played for Zimbabwe national team were playing in this game and we drop nine catches. We failed to bat 100 runs, the minimum requirement of a Test match, and those are the fundamentals of Test cricket, and when you fail to do that, then don't expect to win a match," said Mangongo.
The gaffer added that there needs to be serious introspection going forward as to the direction of the game.
"It's frustrating and disappointing, we need to do a serious introspection and figure out very fast whether we are going in the right direction because, again, I reiterate that when we lose to a proper emerging side and we are a mixture of senior players and franchise players then it's a serious cause for concern," he said.
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In their first innings, Zimbabwe Emerging found themselves in all sorts of trouble on 31/5 before the trio of Mavuta, Frost, and Masuku stepped up to save the day with the bat.
Masuku was the host's leading run-getter with a well-batted 56 runs off 86 balls while Mavuta fell for a patient 52 runs off 115 balls. Frost managed to grind 50 runs from 136 deliveries to help their side breach the 200-run mark.
South Africa Emerging's Tristan Luus had a brilliant spell with the ball, claiming four wickets for just 34 runs in 16 overs. Codi Yusuf finished with figures of 3/35 in his 12-over spell.
Dian Jonathan Forrester and Mihlali Clint Mpongwana scored brilliant centuries for the visitors. Forrester fell for 147 runs off 219 balls while Mpongwana made 133 runs after facing 183 balls. Opening batter, Modiri Mpumelelo Litheko fell just two runs short of his ton on 98 runs from 144 balls while Valentine Kitime was bowled on 65 runs having faced 111 balls.
