On February 20, as six members of Castle Corner, the Zimbabwe fan group, were getting ready to leave Colombo for Harare via Dubai, they got a call from Delta Beverages, part of the Castle Lager Brand.
The six fans – Malvin Kwaramba, Brian Hwenjer, Godwin Mamhiyo, Leonah Tanikwa, Abel Mataranyika and Ben Gotora – had celebrated Zimbabwe’s thrilling last-over victory against Sri Lanka the previous evening along with Sikandar Raza and the players. That was the last match for the Castle Corner crew, who had spent around USD 2000 each from their savings to watch Zimbabwe’s group matches at the 2026 T20 World Cup, all of which were in Sri Lanka.
Before the game against Sri Lanka, Kwaramba had told ESPNcricinfo on February 19 that they had already stretched their budget and could not afford to travel for Zimbabwe’s Super Eight matches in India – in Mumbai (vs West Indies, February 23), Chennai (vs India, February 26) and Delhi (vs South Africa, March 1). The group was content, though, and had boisterously sung their last song to celebrate the win against Sri Lanka: “We have done our part. Time to go home.”
As they were thinking of returning home, reuniting with family and friends, and resuming daily life, the call from a Delta official came to Kwaramba. Delta was keen to sponsor their travel back to India for Zimbabwe’s remaining matches in the T20 World Cup. If that was exciting news, there was more incoming. By the time they touched down in Harare, the official broadcasters of the T20 World Cup, Jiostar, also offered to sponsor their return to India. Soon, a Harare-based company, Pandi Gas, said it too would pitch in.
“While we are still at the airport in Sri Lanka, we started getting calls,” Kwaramba says, animatedly recalling the sequence of events on February 20 and 21. “We got calls from the local company Delta and they said, guys, we have read your (ESPNcricinfo) story, you are coming back but we want you to proceed (to India). We told them that we didn’t have visas. They (Delta) said then come back home, we’ll (help) process that.
“Then Star Sports also contacted us and they said they were ready to host us and pay for everything. Also, we had a local company Pandi Gas who said we are not big, but at least we can give you some money no matter how little. So we were overwhelmed by the support that we got after your piece from ESPNcricinfo was published. So we were actually excited when we landed in Harare, because we knew that the journey had not stopped but was to continue.”
2:30
T20 World Cup 2026 – Sikandar Raza – Zimbabwe ‘hungry and relieved’ to be in Super Eight
The Zimbabwe captain talks on the eve of their Super Eight game against West Indies
With help of the consulate, their visas to India were “fast-tracked” and the six received them on Tuesday and landed in Chennai late on Wednesday evening.
Mamhiyo, an accountant, says their families were supportive of the group travelling to India. “They know the passion that we have for the sport itself and the moment we arrived, me and Malvin in particular, we broke the news to our wives pretty much at the same time and they were more excited for us to be honest than we were.
“They were like, guys, go back, do what you love. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and they were very excited for us. The kids as well – they had seen videos of us jumping around and happy for Zimbabwe, so they were also excited for us to come back and experience this. So it is beautiful that everyone in our lives is very supportive. They love cricket as well and they understand the passion that we have for it.”
Apart from Mamhiyo, who travelled to Delhi once for a “medical trip” for his daughter, nobody else had travelled to India. While Gotora has not travelled as he is recovering from a bug he picked up in Sri Lanka, the remaining five are pinching themselves having landed in India, a country they always wanted to visit because they follow both Indian cricket and the IPL.
“This is what we’ve hoped for, this is what we dream of back home,” Kwaramba says. “We watch the IPL, we follow Indian players, we follow Indian cricket, and it’s everyone’s dream to come to India. So for us it’s surreal.”
Heading into Zimbabwe’s match against defending champions India, the Castle Corner fans were weary due to the travel, but excited. While they will belt out several songs, Kwaramba says the group will always sing one of its most important anthems, which he is certain was a reason for their unexpected trip to India.
It is Vanofambane Mweya Mutsvene, which translates to “we are moving with the Holy Spirit.” They had sung it passionately in Colombo, when Zimbabwe stunned Australia. “It is the Holy Spirit that has taken us this far,” Kwaramba says. “Because of the Holy Spirit, here we are, some thought our journey ended, but we are back in India because of the guidance of the Holy Spirit. So we are going to be singing about the Holy Spirit, how it’s guided us, how it’s going to guide us and how we are going to look forward to it guiding us so that we can beat India.”
Will they be nervous about Zimbabwe facing India? “Hope is the only thing that keeps us going,” Kwaramba says. “If you don’t believe, there’s no reason to watch cricket, there’s no reason to enjoy sports. So you need to have hope no matter how big the match is. Like I told you, David slew Goliath, who was a giant. It can still happen. The story of the underdog, we’ve seen it happen before, so it can still happen. We are hopeful that today is the day that the world remembers that Zimbabwe is here not to make up numbers.”
