By Munyaradzi Madzokere
OF course she had dreamt about it before.
A century on her One Day International (ODI) debut, a win for the country to kick start life in the big league and to be captain of the team when it happens.
It was the setting or perhaps the opponents she could not envision, but this does not stop her from celebrating the epoch-making feat.
Zimbabwe women cricket captain Mary-Anne Musonda etched her name in the history books after scoring a century, 103 to be precise, and help Zimbabwe to an ODI debut win over Ireland at Harare Sports Club recently.
The team eventually lost the series 3 – 1, but history had already been made.
“I had dreamt about it happening, but had not thought about the timing of it happening to be honest. So for it to happen on a day such as that, was pretty exciting,” Musonda reflected on the day the dream came true.
“It’s an amazing feeling. Being in the records isn’t all that easy but it’s what every athlete dreams about,” the 30-year-old star told The Sports Hub.
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“However, I don’t feel any different after this achievement. But probably it sticks out as just a reminder to stick to what’s working on the day and to remain calm always.”
The Zimbabwe women’s team was granted ODI and Test status back in March and had to play their first 50-over match this month against Ireland.
And for Musonda it has been a 15-year-long wait as a cricketer to play her first official ODI match.
On the October 5th afternoon, Musonda helped Zimbabwe chase down a 254-run target, plundering 103 runs in 114 balls for a four wicket victory.
However, Ireland won the next three matches to take the series quite comfortably.
Josephine Nkomo, who was also impressive during the series struck two half centuries, a 70 in the second match and 66 in the final ODI encounter.
Musonda believes there were plenty positives to derive from the Ireland tour of Zimbabwe.
“We had positives to take home but more importantly, lessons.
“We learnt the importance of good starts and sticking to basics. We have to bounce back quickly,” she said.
The team has shown great potential in recent assignments against Thailand and the T20 World Cup regional qualifiers, which they won without losing a single match.
Focus now shifts to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021, which the country will host from November 21 to December 5.
The qualifier was originally scheduled to take place in Sri Lanka from July 3 to 19, 2020 but was postponed thrice due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Musonda looks ahead to the global event.
“We want to compete in each and every game and hope to finish in the top six. It is all possible if we do things correctly,” she said.
It’s yet another opportunity to make another dream come true.
