Taibu playing in Sri Lanka says there are similarities
Topsy-turvy yet illustrious Tatenda Taibu will make his return to the field today in Sri Lanka as a matured and well experienced campaigner. Returning to First Class cricket will be 35-year-old Taibu more or less a father figure for his team mates at his newest entity Badureliya Sports Club, who will take on Saracens at Surrey Village in Maggona in a Sri Lanka Cricket Major League Tier ‘A’ competition.
For Taibu, who threw-in the towel after playing 28 Tests, 150 ODIs and 17 T20Is for Zimbabwe ending a 11-year career in 2012, the return will be solely based on ‘pure enjoyment’ of the game that earned him stardom globally. With that intention Taibu landed in Sri Lanka on December 7 and will hang around in the island throughout the season, the place which he described that had one of the toughest sides in international cricket during his playing days.
“I have been to Sri Lanka before several times as a player and the last time as a selector for Zimbabwe Cricket. This time around, it’s a bit of a twist, I’m back to play first class cricket here, and enjoy my few remaining years as a player. I’m really looking forward to that one,” said a cheerful Taibu.
What Taibu gets as extra privileges this time around will be time to explore Sri Lanka and meet and mingle around with the people, which he likes most. Earlier when he visited Sri Lanka as a player and recently as a Convener of Selectors, Taibu had restrictions as a representative of Zimbabwe, but this time he will have the opportunity of feeling like at home. Attracted by the hospitality the country and its people offer, Taibu stated that Sri Lanka was an obvious choice of his among a few options.
“There were few other options, but I was looking for a place where I would be able get good competition. I have played against the Sri Lanka national team and it was one of the hardest teams I have played against during my international career. I’m looking at the time when the bowling unit that constituted of Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa, Nuwan Kulasekara and so on. I knew that it was very tough to play against when you are back against the wall, they would really make sure the batsmen would not settle easily. It was from there I decided that in Sri Lanka I would get good competition.”
At his new club, Badureliya SC, Taibu will get back to his usual business on field as a wicketkeeper/batsman and he is likely to play a full tournament after the club had to relieve its number one wicketkeeper option due to an injury. A captain himself at the highest level of the game for his country, Taibu depicts the sportsmanship in him as a team player, where he is of the view that he is here to play under a captain and to follow what the coach’s instructions.
“As a player you should be ready for any circumstances,” he said.
Had Taibu not given up his international career in 2012 after scoring 1546 Test runs with a century and 12 fifties and 3393 ODI runs with two centuries and 22 fifties, his career statistics would have been a total contrast by now. He stepped over the boundary line for the last time and made up his mind to step into the church and take a completely different path. He spent six years before making a ‘U’ turn and enter the field again. But the return, as Taibu explained, was never with the intention of making a return to the international stage.
“Life at church was another experience. I always believed that we live once only. If I feel inspired to go in a certain direction. I do not have second doubts, I just make decisions, I do not hesitate. At that time I felt I needed to concentrate on my spiritual life, I did do that. I needed fulfillment in my life. There were critics saying that I was starting a church, which was never true. I was truly concentrating on my spiritual life, lending help to those who needed guidance and I learnt a lot of things I never knew earlier. Six years down the line I felt I wanted to play cricket again, after having a conversation with my son, and I went for it. I only live once. Now I’m getting the experience of how is it to play cricket at 35 and I will certainly enjoy it,” speaking of his six years of sabbatical from cricket, Taibu said.
Soon after the decision was made, Taibu and his family moved to the United Kingdom and settled down in Liverpool, where he joined Hightown St. Mary’s Cricket Club as a player-coach-development officer in 2016. His decision to move out of Zimbabwe was short-lived after Zimbabwe Cricket offered him the role of Convener of Selectors and Development Officer at just 33. Challenge was nothing new for Taibu, who made his First Class debut at 16, international debut at 18 and also becoming the youngest Test captain in history at 21, that too against Sri Lanka in 2004. It was hinted that Taibu would make a return and would probably captain the Zimbabwe side in 2016, but he opted to remain silent.
“From my experience, I have learnt not to close any doors. It’s always wise to have as many as doors open as possible. When I left as a player, I left peacefully. I cannot say what will be there for me in the future. I certainly would like to enjoy the game right now,” affirming his will of not making a return to play at the top level, Taibu revealed.
By now the playful and energetic Taibu the cricket lovers knew across the world, is a completely different character altogether. He is more mature than he was during the chaotic career, where varied incidents were many. Despite all Taibu was dearly loved all over the world for the manner he conducted himself on and off the field. But tolerance too has its limits and though he did not show openly, probably that was what drove Taibu out of Zimbabwe in 2016, doubled up with the political instability then in Zimbabwe. He is of the view that a professional player would look into a place where their career is viable.
“That’s the reason why many left Zimbabwe in search of greener pasture,” justifying the mass exodus of Zimbabwe cricketers, some years back, Taibu said.
Interestingly Taibu has stepped on to a land which now has many similarities to his native land of Zimbabwe, where politics, sports, economy and many important factors are interconnected, on purpose or unintentionally. As many would easily like to believe, Taibu too was of the view that politics and sports were two contrasting ends.
“All you have to do is see how politics can be an influence in sports, not only in Zimbabwe but all over. When there’s no political stability in a country, all other aspects are affected. As a young person growing up I thought sports was something that could unite people and politics was something that get people fight. And I thought the two would never work together. However once I was a grown I understood that it’s not the same. There’s no way you can separate sports from politics. Sports come under the Ministry of Sports and the Minster of Sports is a politician. In other words politics has forced very good cricketers out of Zimbabwe. It was one of the reasons why Zimbabwe had to plunge down in world cricket.”
Taibu looks forward for tough competition, from where most of his inspiration was driven through the brand of cricket Sri Lanka played some years back. Unlike what Zimbabwe had to go through to end up where it is now in world cricket, for known reasons, Sri Lanka are going through a constant struggle. Taibu, who loved the brand of Sri Lankan cricket, stated it should be ‘temporary’.
“You cannot compare the Sri Lanka team I faced to any. That’s a special team. Murali was the hardest bowler I have ever faced. He’s a magician. So to have an attack that was complete, where the batting line up of the opposite team do not get any rest. You face a bowling attack opened by Chaminda Vaas, who creates problems with his late swing. Once you manage to deal him and think it’s done, then comes Murali. Even the batting was top class, they had Marvan Atapattu, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and so on, it was a superb team. Unfortunately that group left almost together. It will take a bit of time for a new group to come to that level and bring the glory back again,” was his view, into which he added more.
“If I’m not mistaken, I suppose politics played a part. We cannot ignore the fact that Sri Lanka had stars and all of them left almost at the same time. You take Australia, they beat all other teams, but when their top players left almost at the same time, they too had to struggle. It would take time rebuild a team that lost many of its key players overnight. Certain countries will go through that problem, but if they correctly go through their structure and feed enough youngsters to the system while the star players are still there, then that country is going in the correct path.”
Taibu has an outside chance of being recalled to the Zimbabwe national side, even if he dislikes the option of making an international comeback, if his bat could do the talking from today in Sri Lanka. But what he really anticipates is a good time, some good cricket and probably an extended contract with his new club for another season, nothing big.