Mawoyo calls for more application from Zimbabwe batsmen

BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe: While New Zealand took three days off and spent a night at a game farm, Zimbabwe trained for three days and held a team dinner at what can safely be called Bulawayo’s best eatery.

Between bites of thick-cut steaks, Zimbabwe, “spoke about where we feel we fell short in the last game and what we need to do to improve,” Tino Mawoyo, their opening batsman, said.

“There were some encouraging things said to the up-and-coming youngsters from the senior guys, some good words from the coach to gee us up before the next game. Those kinds of things are important - doing things together a team.”

As a Test team, Zimbabwe rarely even play together, and their lack of familiarity of the format, and each other, shows. Primarily, the top order’s inability to provide a platform has placed extra pressure on the rest of the line-up and it is the first thing Zimbabwe want to fix.

“The guys have had a good look at how they got out and also had a good chance to look at New Zealand’s bowlers,” Mawoyo said.

“There’s a little bit more grit needed, a little bit more application and being able to say to yourself, ‘let me go out there, suss out conditions and give myself a chance’.

While Tim Southee and Trent Boult swing the ball, Neil Wagner brings a barrage of short balls, which test Zimbabwe’s technique. As Prince Masvaure suggested after the first day’s play in the first Test, the more Zimbabwe told themselves not to succumb to Wagner, the more they did, but Mawoyo explained they have worked on a better mental approach.

“As the psychologists say, if you don’t want to do something, don’t say don’t. Find a better way of saying it which is probably, look to get under the ball. As we saw the captain in the second innings, and a little bit of Donald Tiripano earlier, they took it on the body,” Mawoyo said. “Guys have done a little bit more work with the shorts ball in the nets. “I think that’s something we will address a lot better in the second Test.”