Although Zimbabwe wasn’t able to improve their finishing from their Netball World Cup debut, captain Felisitus Kwangwa is proud of the performance of her team.
The Gems claimed the 13th position after defeating Barbados in the placing match, this is a step back from their eighth place finish at the 2019 edition in Liverpool.
The Gems are glowing ??@NetballZimbabwe finish the @NetballWorldCup in 13th with three wins ??#NWC2023 | #PutYourHandsUp pic.twitter.com/JwXgvfTkZv
— World Netball (@WorldNetball_) August 4, 2023
Kwanga laments their slow start at the competition held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, where the Gems failed to register a win in the first preliminary round only to come back in the second preliminary stages to win two of their three matches to finish top of that group.
Kwanga says the team only found its spark a little too late.
“As a team, we lost ourselves during the start of the tournament and that is how we ended up here. We just raised our heads a little bit too late, everything was done but this is part and parcel of the competition. The best team on that day would win. For the last few games we had we just told ourselves we had to work really hard and finish strong, even though we knew that it was positioning so that we could finish better in our group.
"I am just glad that everyone in the team managed to rise to the occasion and something that has made me happy is that three of the new players who really played well, were outstanding we saw them walking away with the Most Valuable Player which is really good. It just shows that the future of the Gems is really bright. Not only in this tournament but looking forward to the future that we will do better,” says Kwangwa.
SEVERAL NEWCOMERS
The skipper reckons more preparations for the tournament would have helped the team get to know each other better, which would have helped the team have a better start.
“I can say that the missing part was maybe part of our preparations, maybe playing our three friendly games just 24 hours before the real tournament might have played a very big role in making us tired before we started our games. At the same time, I feel like, in terms of experience as well, we had a lot of new players. It was their first time to play on an international stage and their first World Cup. It was really hard but we learnt a lot as a team and I am hoping that next time if we manage to qualify for the World Cup you will really see what we are capable of doing,” she says.
The Gems side had several newcomers, including Canberra, Australia-based Nalani Makunde. Although the goal shooter was showing up for her country for the first time, she seems to have gotten along well with her teammates.
“It was a little bit harder to find the combinations with her but I am glad as time went on she managed to gel in. I think we actually play a different style of netball from where she comes from. I am glad she was willing to gel in and play our style of netball which is really good. She really played well. I hope to see her again in future World Cups,” she says.
Cape Town seems to have put on a show, hosting the first ever African Netball World Cup. Kwangwa hopes that the successful hosting of the tournament will see more African countries investing in the development and growth of the sport.
“It was really good to have the World Cup in Africa. Unfortunately as one of the African countries, we didn’t make it that far but just having it at home, with our home crowd really means a lot. I think it means a lot in the development of netball, probably more nations will chip into netball since it has been hosted in Africa. They probably now know what netball can do, I think it’s quite good having it in Africa,” she says.
The Surrey Storm, who became the first Zimbabwean to play in the UK’s Netball Super League, admits that the tournament was a tough one. She says a lot lay on her shoulder to help the team move forward.
“For me, as a captain, it has been a hard tournament. The burden was on me especially when things were not going well but it was worth being here for the experience because as a player you grow each and every day. A great experience that we take with us home and probably do better in terms of developing Zimbabwe netball,” she says.
Legends saying goodbye, but also potential shining through ??@NetballZimbabwe beat Barbados in the 13th-14th play-off by 75-48 ????#NWC2023 | #PutYourHandsUp pic.twitter.com/nZOJQAU9U5
— World Netball (@WorldNetball_) August 4, 2023