New Captain for Zimbabwe as Ngarava Set to Lead Against Bangladesh in Test

Zimbabwe are set to begin a new chapter ahead of their one-off Test against Bangladesh, with left-arm fast bowler Richard Ngarava preparing to captain the national side in the longest format for the first time. Zimbabwe Cricket has announced a 15-member squad for the match to be played in Harare.

The leadership change was initiated late last year. Craig Ervine captained Zimbabwe during their previous Test series against Afghanistan in October. After stepping down from the role in December, Ngarava was appointed captain of both the Test and ODI teams. The pacer has taken 25 wickets in 11 Test appearances for Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe have also made several changes to the squad that featured in the Afghanistan series. Five players have earned recalls following impressive performances in domestic cricket. Innocent Kaia, Graeme Cremer, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wesley Madhevere and Newman Nyamhuri have all returned to the Test setup.

However, the hosts will be without experienced all-rounder Sikandar Raza for the series. He is currently on leave from national duty to represent Worcestershire in the 2026 Vitality Blast in England.

The one-off Test will begin on Sunday at the Harare Sports Club, with the match scheduled to start at 2:00 PM Bangladesh time. Following the Test, the two sides will face each other in three-match ODI and T20I series.

Zimbabwe Squad

Richard Ngarava (captain), Brian Bennett, Tanaka Chivanga, Graeme Cremer, Ben Curran, Craig Ervine, Brad Evans, Innocent Kaia, Roy Kaia, Wesley Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Blessing Muzarabani, Newman Nyamhuri, Brendan Taylor and Tafadzwa Tsiga.