Zimbabwe have named a 15-man squad for their ODI series against Australia, and it reads like a blend of revival, risk and raw opportunity.
With regular ODI captain Richard Ngarava sidelined by a lower-back injury, Sikandar Raza will lead the side for the three-match contest in Harare on 15, 18 and 20 September. Raza, already the heartbeat of Zimbabwe’s white-ball cricket, now carries the armband at a time when the team leans heavily on his authority, runs and overs.
But it’s the names from another era that jump off the page.
Cremer and Taylor roll back the years
Graeme Cremer is back in Zimbabwe’s ODI squad for the first time since 2018. The former captain, a leg-spinner with guile and grit, last faced Australia in a one-day international at the 2011 World Cup. That was his only ODI outing against them. Fifteen years on from his debut, he returns to the format with a career that has refused to close quietly.
Cremer has already eased his way into the international frame again, reappearing in the T20I setup last year, playing at the T20 World Cup earlier this year and then featuring in the Namibia T20I tri-series. Now comes the bigger stage: a full ODI series against one of the game’s giants, on home soil.
Alongside him, Brendan Taylor’s name brings its own weight. The 40-year-old keeper-batter, Zimbabwe’s second-highest ODI run-scorer of all time, is back in the fold. He briefly resurfaced in 2025 with two ODIs against Sri Lanka after a four-year absence, and now stands just 81 runs away from surpassing Andy Flower as Zimbabwe’s leading ODI run-getter.
That number hangs over the series. Every innings, every start, every misjudged drive will be measured against that 81-run chase.
Balancing experience and change
Tadiwanashe Marumani joins Taylor as the other wicketkeeping option, a reminder that this is not simply a nostalgia tour. Zimbabwe are trying to thread a needle: harness the experience of old campaigners while still giving the next generation real responsibility.
Some decisions, though, were forced. Ngarava’s back injury removes a key left-arm quick and their regular ODI leader from the attack. Tendai Chatara, another seasoned seamer, also misses out with an Achilles tendon injury, stripping Zimbabwe of two of their most reliable new-ball options.
Other calls are purely selection. Clive Madande, who kept wicket in the previous ODI series against Bangladesh in July, has not been picked this time. With Taylor and Marumani in the squad, Zimbabwe have opted for a different balance behind the stumps and in the middle order.
Harare braces for Australia’s return
Australia’s arrival marks the first time since 2014 that they will play an ODI in Zimbabwe. Back then, the sides met in a triangular series with South Africa at the Harare Sports Club. The venue returns as the centrepiece again, hosting all three matches in this series.
For Zimbabwe, it’s more than just another bilateral contest. It is a chance to test a reshaped core against elite opposition, to see whether Raza’s leadership, Cremer’s second act and Taylor’s pursuit of Flower’s record can knit into something competitive.
Three games. One storied ground. A captain stepping in, a leg-spinner reborn, a batter chasing down history. How far can this mix really push Australia in Harare?
