Graeme Cremer

Graeme Cremer blessed with plenty of skill and a very strong mind. A leg spinner who has been touted as a future star in the Test arena, Cremer has given plenty of glimpses of his talent. Cremer's debut came at a very turbulent time in Zimbabwean cricket. Heath Streak and a whole host of senior players rebelled against the board, leading to them being dismissed by the Zimbabwe Cricket Board. An inexperienced squad was chosen and Zimbabwe plunged to the bottom in Test cricket

Amidst all this, Cremer made his debut against Bangladesh in 2004. He managed to pick up six wickets in two matches, but it was a unhappy tour for Zimbabwe as they handed Bangladesh their first and only Test victory so far when they lost the first Test at Chittagong by 226 runs. He had a torrid time in the South Africa series, where he was thrashed to all parts of Cape Town by Kallis. In the end, he managed to pick up the wickets of Graeme Smith, AB de Villiers and Jacques Kallis. A thrashing of that magnitude could have broken down any cricketer, but Cremer hung in there and continued to perform admirably.

The 2005 series against New Zealand was Cremer's last. Zimbabwe voluntarily withdrew from test cricket in 2005, but in the ODIs, Cremer continued to give some solid performances. In his debut series against Kenya in Kenya , he picked up 15 wickets in five matches and on Kenya's return tour to Zimbabwe, Cremer picked up his first five wicket haul in ODIs. His variations, including a terrific googly, economical returns and great control over his bowling have all indicated a bright future. With 53 wickets in 43 ODI games, the future looks very bright for him and for Zimbabwe.

Cremer has been touted to fill the role of the leg spinner in the wake of Paul Strang's retirement. With such qualities, he will be the player to look out for as Zimbabwe look to come back to the Test fold in August 2011.

However, a cruel quirk of fate in the form of injury relegated Creamer to the sidelines when Zimbabwe returned to the Test fold. Having recovered and recuperated, he was picked for the lone Test against New Zealand in 2012, over six years after his debut in whites. With Cremer shoring up his batting as well, he gave Zimbabwe that rare luxury of options.

By Cricbuzz staff