Tatenda Taibu facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name |
Tatenda Taibu
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| Born | 14 May 1983 Harare, Zimbabwe |
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| Nickname | Tibbly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm medium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Wicket-keeper | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relations | Kudzai Taibu (brother) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| Test debut (cap 52) | 19 July 2001 v West Indies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 26 January 2012 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut (cap 64) | 23 June 2001 v West Indies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 9 February 2012 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI shirt no. | 44 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| T20I debut (cap 14) | 12 September 2007 v Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last T20I | 14 February 2012 v New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000/01–2004/05 | Mashonaland | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006/07 | Namibia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007/08–2008/09 | Northerns | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Kolkata Knight Riders | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009/10 | Mountaineers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010/11–2011/12 | Southern Rocks | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018/19 | Badureliya Sports Club | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: ESPNcricinfo, 14 September 2017
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Tatenda Taibu (born 14 May 1983) is a former cricket player from Zimbabwe. He was a special kind of player called a wicket-keeper-batsman. This means he was good at catching the ball behind the stumps and also at hitting runs. Tatenda Taibu even became the captain of the Zimbabwe national cricket team. For a long time, he was the youngest Test captain ever, leading his team when he was only 20 years old. Later, another player named Rashid Khan from Afghanistan became a younger captain in 2019. As of 2025, Taibu is working as the Head Coach for Cricket PNG, which is Papua New Guinea's national men's cricket team, also known as the PNG Barramundis.
In July 2012, when he was only 29, Taibu decided to stop playing cricket to focus on his church work. However, in December 2018, news came out that he was returning to the sport. Later that same month, he played first-class cricket for Badureliya Sports Club in Sri Lanka.
Contents
Tatenda Taibu's Cricket Journey
Starting Young in Cricket
Tatenda Taibu started playing first-class cricket when he was just 16 years old. He made his first appearance for the Zimbabwe national team in 2001, at the age of 18. He quickly showed his talent.
Becoming a Captain
In 2003, Taibu was chosen as the vice-captain for the team's tour of England. Then, in April 2004, he became the national captain. This made him the youngest Test captain in history at that time. He held this record until 2019 when Rashid Khan of Afghanistan became captain at an even younger age. Rashid Khan was 8 days younger than Taibu when he led Afghanistan against Bangladesh.
Playing for Other Teams
From 2005 to 2007, Taibu took a break from playing for Zimbabwe. During this time, he played a season as captain for Namibia and another season for the Cape Cobras in South Africa.
Returning to Zimbabwe's Team
Taibu came back to the Zimbabwean team in July 2007 for a series against India A, where he scored a century (100 runs). The next month, Zimbabwe played against South Africa in a three-game One Day International (ODI) series. In the last game, Taibu scored his highest ODI score of 107 runs without being out. This was the first time a Zimbabwean player scored an ODI century against South Africa.
Key Performances and Records
In 2010, Taibu continued his good form, scoring 73 runs against South Africa. He also played a great innings of 98 runs for his team in the 2011 Cricket World Cup. This helped Zimbabwe win by 175 runs against Canada.
When Zimbabwe started playing Test cricket again in 2011, Taibu was chosen for matches against Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand. He scored half-centuries (50 runs or more) in each of these three Test matches.
On 20 March 2011, during the 2011 World Cup, Taibu scored 53 runs against Kenya. This made him the fifth Zimbabwean player to score 3,000 runs in ODIs. He also set a record partnership for Zimbabwe in ODIs with Stuart Matsikenyeri, scoring 188 runs together for the sixth wicket.
Why Tatenda Taibu Retired
On 10 July 2012, Tatenda Taibu decided to retire from cricket at the age of 29. He explained that he wanted to focus on his work for the church. He felt that his "true calling" was to do the Lord's work, and even though he was proud to play for his country, it was time to put all his energy into his faith.
When he retired, he had scored 1,546 runs in Test matches, with 57 catches and 5 stumpings. In ODIs, he scored 3,393 runs, with 114 catches and 33 stumpings. He finished as Zimbabwe's fourth-highest run-scorer in ODIs and had the second most dismissals as a wicketkeeper, just behind Andy Flower.
Tatenda Taibu's Life After Cricket
After retiring from playing cricket, Taibu moved to Liverpool, England. In 2016, he joined Hightown St. Mary's Cricket Club as a player-coach. While writing his autobiography, he realized he needed to return to Zimbabwe.
In June 2016, he accepted a role with Zimbabwe Cricket as a convener of selectors and development officer. He worked hard to encourage talented players like Brendan Taylor and Kyle Jarvis to return and play for Zimbabwe, which they did in September 2017.
In 2019, Taibu wrote a book called 'Keeper of Faith'. In his book, he shares stories about his life, including his childhood, his experiences in cricket, and the challenges he faced.
See also
In Spanish: Tatenda Taibu para niños
