Luke Jongwe

Luke Jongwe was born on 6th February 1995 in Harare the capital of Zimbabwe. He grew up playing cricket in the dusty streets of Glen View, and there his cricketing ability was identified by a stranger. His parents opposed the idea of him pursuing cricket as a career and instead asked him to focus on school. However, he was determined to prove his ability at the national level.

Luke started establishing himself as a batter rather than an all-rounder and he was soon picked for the U-14 squad to tour Namibia. At the age of 17, he represented Zimbabwe U-19 at the 2012 U-19 World Cup. He continued his journey in U-19 cricket and finally towards the end of 2013, Jongwe made his List A debut for Southern Rocks in the Pro50 Championship. He did pick a wicket on debut but came really low down the order to be able to make an impact.

A couple of days later, Luke Jongwe made his first-class debut, in which, he failed to impress. The following year he represented Zimbabwe U-19 in the 2014 World Cup where he soon became the spearhead of the bowling department. All of a sudden his bowling was in the forefront and his batting contributions were restricted to the lower order.

It was in 2014 itself, that he made his ODI debut against South Africa at home and conceded 45 runs in 6 overs. He did not perform with the bat either but he still had time on his side. The following year, Jongwe made his T20 debut for Zimbabwe President’s XI in the Africa T20 Cup which paved the way for his T20I debut against Pakistan.

Luke Jongwe started 2016 brightly and took his maiden 5-wicket haul against Afghanistan conceding just 6 runs. A head injury during practice that year took away his opportunity to play in the T20 World Cup in India. He was primed to lead the bowling attack but as fate would have it, his unveiling on the world stage was delayed.

Jongwe regained full fitness and slowly worked himself back into the international set-up. He made his Test debut in 2021 against Pakistan, taking a solitary wicket in the one innings that he bowled but showed fighting spirit with the bat. Soon, he became an integral part of the Zimbabwe team as an all-rounder. Luke will be hoping that his career kicks off and he can fulfil his dream of becoming a Zimbabwe great.