In a fantastic story of a comeback, Graeme Cremer, the former Zimbabwe captain and leg-spinner, has been called up to the Zimbabwe team for a three-match T20I series against Afghanistan starting on October 29, in Harare. This will be Cremer’s first game of international cricket since 2018, which concludes an absence of seven years from the national team set-up.
Graeme Cremer’s Path to Return to International Cricket
Graeme Cremer, 39, played for Zimbabwe in 2018, after which he took a break from cricket to focus on golf. During his break, he moved to the UAE (now United Arab Emirates) to be with his wife, Merna, an airline pilot. Earlier this year, Cremer returned to Zimbabwe to play domestic cricket, participating in club cricket in an effort to secure a return to international cricket.
Despite missing out on selection for the Africa Regional Qualifiers, where Zimbabwe qualified for the 2026 T20 World Cup, Cremer’s good form at home has seen him recalled for the Afghanistan series.
Zimbabwe Squad Update: One Change from Qualifier-Winning Team
The Zimbabwe Cricket selection committee has kept pretty much the same 15-man team that remained unbeaten in the regional qualifiers. The sole change has Trevor Gwandu, the fast bowler, been replaced by Graeme Cremer. Veteran all-rounder Sean Williams is still out of action as he deals with personal issues, the board asserted in a statement.
Afghanistan Series Timetable
The whole series of Zimbabwe vs Afghanistan T20I will be hosted in Harare which also staged the tour’s lone Test match.
1st T20I: October 29
2nd T20I: October 31
3rd T20I: November 2
The series is important preparation for both sides before next year’s global competition.
2026 T20 World Cup: A Major Target for Zimbabwe
The 2026 ICC T20 World Cup will take place in India and Sri Lanka, contested by 20 teams, in February-March. Zimbabwe will therefore seek to take something from this home series and work on team combinations for the World Cup.
Complete Zimbabwe Squad for Afghanistan T20I Series
Zimbabwe Squad:
Sikandar Raza (captain), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Graeme Cremer, Brad Evans, Clive Madande, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tony Munyonga, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Brendan Taylor.
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