Zimbabwe’s “A” cricket team was roughly handled by Sri Lanka’s “A” team Thursday in Harare, losing by 31 runs in the last in a series of one day international matches fans hope will smooth the team's way back onto the international test circuit.
But Sri Lanka made a clean 3-0 sweep of the series and at least one observer concluded that Zimbabwe has more work to do before returning to test play.
Sports commentator Brian Goredema told reporter Marvellous Mhlanga-Nyahuye of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that that based on Zimbabwe's performance Thursday he does not believe the team is ready to return to test status by next May.
The International Cricket Council has advised Zimbabwe to play international four-day matches in preparation for a return to the test circuit. But Zimbabwe's inexperienced players have to continued to suffer at the hands of more experienced teams.
Nonetheless, Zimbabwe last month staged an upset win against Australia in one of their matches at the World Cup Twenty20 in South Africa, leading some to conclude it wouldn't be very long before Zimbabwe was a contender again in test action.
More reports from VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe...