Gems finally win; beat Sri Lanka 71-36, debutant Muzanenhamo shines

A top notch performance by debutant and the youngest player in the squad Nicole Muzanenhamo, inspired the Zimbabwe national netball team (The Gems) to finally register their first win at the ongoing 2023 Netball World Cup being held in Cape Town, South Africa.

The 20-year-old Bulawayo born netball star was voted Player of the Match.

The Gems who have had a disastrous campaign, managed a sweet and big 71-36 victory over yet to win Sri Lanka.

They finally secured a win after four defeats on the trot, against netball powerhouse Australia, minnows Fiji, Tonga and Barbados respectively.

Reacting to the victory, Muzanenhamo who plays at Goal Attack (GA) said:

“It’s a game we had to win. We had no other option but to post a victory. We have already disappointed the nation after failing to give ourselves a chance to fight for a place in the top 12.”

She is hoping for a 13th position finish.

“We now have a chance to finish in position 13. Looking at the poor showing we have had at the World Cup, I think 13th place won’t be very bad.

“It’s now a matter of retaining focus. We need to play against Singapore the same way we did against Sri Lanka.

“It was a very tough but we managed to seize control of every situation. It’s good to have finally won a match at the World Cup,” Muzanenhamo added.

“We are very happy as a team and we know everyone back home (Zimbabwe) is also happy”.

Zimbabwe play Singapore in their final match on Wednesday morning.