Shepherd Tichaendepi Makunura (23 October 1976 – 15 December 2022) was a Zimbabwean cricket player and coach. He played two

Logan Cup The Logan Cup is the premier domestic first-class cricket competition in Zimbabwe and is organised by Zimbabwe Cricket. It is named after James Douglas Logan. History The first recorded cricket match in what was known at the time as Rhodesia w ...

seasons before retiring due to injury. He served as fielding coach of the

Zimbabwe national cricket team The Zimbabwe men's national cricket team, also known as the Chevrons, represents Zimbabwe in men's international cricket and is overseen by Zimbabwe Cricket. Zimbabwe has been a Full Member of the International Cricket Council since 1992. As o ...

and also coached Zimbabwe A, Zimbabwe Under-19s and several domestic teams.

Early life

Makunura was born in Salisbury (now Harare) on 23 October 1976. He attended Chengu Primary School in Highfield and then attended

Prince Edward School Prince Edward School (or Prince Edward, commonly referred to as PE) is a public, boarding and day school for boys aged 13 to 19 in Harare, Zimbabwe. It provides education facilities to 1200+ boys in Forms I to VI. The school is served by a grad ...

on a scholarship.

Playing career

Makunura was a right-handed batsman and right-arm

off break Off spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called an off spinner. Off spinners bowl with their right-arm and a finger spin action. Their normal delivery is called an off break, which spins from left to ...

bowler. His talent was identified by a

Zimbabwe Cricket Union Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC), previously known as the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) until 2004, is the governing body for the sport of cricket in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Cricket is a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), and administers th ...

development program for urban areas and he made the national under-15 squad, as well as joining the Takashinga Cricket Club. He played three matches for Mashonaland A in the

2001–02 Logan Cup The 2001–02 Logan Cup was a first-class cricket competition held in Zimbabwe from 15 February 2002 – 19 April 2002. It was won by Mashonaland Mashonaland is a region in northeastern Zimbabwe. It is home to nearly half of the population of ...

, recording a career-best 62 runs against

Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefor ...

. He returned to

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

in the 2006–07 season with two matches for Northerns against Southerns and Kenya Select. His playing career was cut short by an achilles tendon injury in 2007.

Coaching career

Makunura coached the Zimbabwe national under-19 cricket team from 2008 to 2010. He was head coach of Zimbabwe A for series against

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

in 2018, and also coached the Zimbabwe XI at the

2018 Africa T20 Cup The 2018 Africa T20 Cup was the fourth and final edition of the Africa T20 Cup, a Twenty20 cricket tournament. It was held in South Africa in September 2018, as a curtain-raiser to the 2018–19 South African domestic season. Provincial side Kw ...

in South Africa. In the same year he joined the

as fielding coach, a position he held until his death in 2022. In domestic cricket, Makunura led the

Mountaineers Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...

franchise to three consecutive Logan Cup titles from 2017 to 2019. He then won a record fourth consecutive title with the

Southern Rocks The Southern Rocks is one of five Zimbabwean cricket franchises. They are a first-class cricket team, based in the Masvingo and Matabeleland South area. They play their home matches at Masvingo Sports Club in Masvingo. The team initially ceased t ...

in 2020.

Personal life and death

Makunura had two children with his wife Sinikiwe Mpofu, who played for the

Zimbabwe women's national cricket team The Zimbabwe women's national cricket team represents Zimbabwe in international women's cricket. The team is organised by Zimbabwe Cricket, a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Zimbabwe's women team made its international ...

. Makunura died at the West End Hospital in Harare on 15 December 2022, following a long illness that had prevented him from travelling to the

2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup The 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the eighth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20. It was played in Australia from 16 October to 13 November 2022. In the final, England cricket team, England beat Pakist ...

in Australia. He was buried at the Warren Hills Cemetery in Harare. Hardly a month after Makunura's passing, his wife, Sinikiwe Mpofu also died after collapsing at her home.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Makunura, Shepherd 1976 births 2022 deaths Cricketers from Harare Zimbabwean cricketers Zimbabwean cricket coaches Mashonaland A cricketers Northerns (Zimbabwe) cricketers