Richard Ngarava

Richard Ngarava is a left-arm pacer, representing the Zimbabwe national cricket team. Prior to making his international debut, Ngarava was part of Zimbabwe’s squad for the 2016 U-19 World Cup.

Ngarava was a subject of controversy in the 2016 U-19 World Cup. In a game against West Indies, Zimbabwe needed 3 runs to win with just one wicket in hand, when fast bowler Keemo Paul started bowling the final over. As Paul started delivering the first ball, Ngarava at the non-striker's end was out of his crease on quest for a quick single. However, instead of delivering the bowl, Paul removed the bails and as a result of this controversial ‘Mankad’ decision, West Indies won the match by two runs.

Ngarava made his List-A debut playing for Zimbabwe A against Afghanistan A in the year 2017.

Following the List-A matches, the speedster was added to the Zimbabwe squad for the five-match ODI series against Afghanistan. He played in all five matches and bagged 7 wickets in the series. More than anything else, he impressed everyone with accurate line and length.

The following year he was named in Zimbabwe’s Test squad for the series against Bangladesh. However, he was ruled out of the series due to an injury. 

The Harare born was included in the T20I squad for the 2019 Singapore Tri-Nation Series. He finally made his debut against Singapore, and even though he picked up 2 crucial wickets, the left-armer also conceded 48 runs in four overs.

Ngarava was then drafted into the Zimbabwe squad for the two-match Test series against Afghanistan scheduled in March 2021. However, he did not feature in any of the matches.

A promising young pacer, Ngarava still has a long road ahead of him. If nurtured properly, he can turn out to be a match-winner for the Zimbabwe team. 

(As of Mar 2021)