Kyle Jarvis - A precious ornament

There was a time when Zimbabwe gifted the world cricket enough charm – the flavour of a giant-killer. Their team had the dash and killer instincts to make the toughest opposition run for their money. Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Heath Streak, David Houghton, Alastair Campbell and co were by no means top quality performers in world cricket and time and again they unleashed super-class exhibitions to trigger standing ovations. They certainly were a team to be afraid of.

But in the course of time, their cricketing future had been overshadowed by political whims which has switched off the light of hope and scripted darkness to devour Zimbabwe cricket’s bright future. The Zimbabwe side of today is just a shadow of the glorious past. For six years they were out of Test cricket and when they did return to Test cricket with a bang against the Tigers, still they are too shaky to cope with a competitive world which has gone miles ahead.

The current Zimbabwe side doesn’t boost with the charismatic talents of the past but when you watch the 22-year old Kyle Jarvis run and bowl, your hopes do rise again regarding Zimbabwe’s cricket future. Jarvis since his Test debut against the Tigers have been an impressive package to quench the thirst of those cricket romanticists who relish witnessing a pace bowler in full-throttle with a smooth action. With a McGrath like action, Jarvis is blessed with a rhythm and astute control over his bowling. Most of the times Jarvis pitches the ball in and around the corridor of uncertainty and hits the good length area more often and then jags the ball back in or moves it away from the batsmen.

His guile had not been limited only against Bangladesh but the Kiwis and West Indies too felt the nagging and incisiveness of Jarvis. Again, in an era, when swing bowling seems to have found a new home in the museum, Jarvis seems to be rekindling the lost art of swing bowling. He can use his wrists very well to extract movement from any sort of surface and his ability to use the bowling crease at will definitely ranks him as a top-notcher. Not only against the right-handed batters, but against the left-handers, Jarvis is equally equipped to outfox them with his tenacious deliveries.

Kyle Jarvis is the son of the former Zimbabwean cricketer Malcom Jarvis. The cricketing world first witnessed Jarvis’ talent in 2008 during the ICC Under-19 World Cup. He mesmerized the opposition batsmen with his astonishing control and movement. After the appointment of Heath Streak as the bowling coach of Zimbabwe, Jarvis was introduced into the national side in the home series against Kenya in 2009 and then after exhibiting his guile against the Kenyans, Jarvis was equally impressive in the subsequent ODI series against Bangladesh and South Africa. Lack of regular international cricket never dented his spirit and skills but with the progression of time Jarvis continued to become better. The Test series against Bangladesh, New Zealand and West Indies have been the perfect examples. 

But sadly, Jarvis represents a side which in most of the times is found traveling through the troubled waters. Petty quarrels and political whims always halt the country’s further progress in cricket. And for which talents like Jarvis gradually get lost the long run. Again, players like Jarvis don’t get an opportunity to show their class in the big stages as the top sides of world cricket hardly play against Zimbabwe.

But do talents like Jarvis deserve this? My answer is NO!

Kyle Jarvis is a precious ornament of world cricket and should be preserved with care. Jarvis deserves adequate opportunities and proper exposure at the highest level so that he can enlighten this planet of cricket with his sizzling abilities. Last year, a brief stint in New Zealand's domestic cricket did help Jarvis a lot, but he deserves more of those opportunities.It’s not only the responsibility of Zimbabwe cricket but also a responsibility of the big-shots of world cricket to provide the efficient platform and adequate opportunities so that he can enrich this glorious game.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar