Story by Lawrence Trusida, Sports Editor
ZIMBABWE Cricket believes new Chevrons coach Justin Sammons who was appointed this Wednesday is the best man to nurture emerging talent.
Sammons was named Chevrons’ head coach this Wednesday and will be assisted by former national team opening batsman Dion Ebrahim.
Sammons’s appointment comes six months after Dave Houghton stepped down after Zimbabwe failed to qualify for the 2024 T20 World Cup which is currently underway in the United States of America and the West Indies.
Sammons was South Africa’s batting consultant for three years and left the role in February last year.
He never played international cricket but had a long club career in South Africa and the Netherlands.
Sammons made his name nurturing talent at the South African High-Performance Centre and he moved on to the senior national team where he was credited for shaping the likes of Dean Elgar, Theunis de Bruyn, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Khaya Zondo and Heinrich Klaasen among other players
With such a record, Zimbabwe Cricket believes he will do well with a young side as Craig Ervine, Sean Williams and Sikander Raza are now at the twilight of their careers.
“He brings a wealth of coaching experience and a reputation of identifying, nurturing and developing some of the best young talent in South Africa. His hard-working and passionate approach,, as well as a sense of values on and off the pitch make him the ideal person to take us forward,” said Zimbabwe Cricket chairperson, Honourable Tavengwa Mukuhlani.
Cricket expert Dean Du Plessis is, however, not getting carried away by the appointment.
“He has a stellar record in development stages but this is his first national team job and I think we need to wait and see how he will transition into that because it’s a different terrain altogether.”
Sammons first assignment will be a five-match T20 series against India from the 6th of July in Harare.
He takes over a side evidently on a low point having missed three out of the last four World Cups and will have to go through a qualifying tournament for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
