John Ward looks forward to the Zimbabwean tour to South Africa for the triangular tournament which also includes England, and sounds out Andy Flower for his expectations.

Zimbabwe have just completed their most torrid few months to date since their elevation to Test status in 1992. For much of the time they were unrecognisable as the team that defeated India at home, won a Test series away against Pakistan and defeated South Africa in the World Cup. Confidence, so high a year ago, evaporated like the morning dew and the national team faced one disaster after another, particularly against the two current giants of world cricket, Australia and South Africa.

Thanks in no small measure to the astute captaincy and determined batting of Andy Flower, they showed signs of pulling out of the slump against Sri Lanka. But there is still a long way to go, and that fragile confidence can so easily be shattered again. Quite possibly most of the players are subconsciously resigned to defeat already when they face South Africa down south in the triangular series - but then they felt that way in the World Cup as well.

What about England? Zimbabwe have won five out of seven one-day matches played against England, and so their confidence should be high with a record like that. But it manifestly was not in the World Cup, when they lost in insipid fashion to England immediately after their thrilling victory over India. The players will again have to battle feelings of unjustified inferiority, based on their recent record of losses, when they face England in little over a week from now.

Zimbabwe expect to have Heath Streak and Neil Johnson back and fit to bowl in the triangular tournament, which should lift the rest of the team. But Paul Strang is still unfit and Adam Huckle is still incarcerated at Turk Mine, unwilling to respond to his country's time of need. Both England and South Africa are perhaps vulnerable to leg-spinners, and here Zimbabwe has two outstanding performers who are unavailable. In addition Eddo Brandes, the scourge of England three years ago and who probably still has a psychological advantage over several of their players, has been omitted from the squad.

It is in batting that Zimbabwe have failed most regularly recently, but they are on paper very well equipped. They will be looking to Grant Flower and Alistair Campbell to continue their excellent work at the top of the order, but the question is where does Neil Johnson fit in now, on his return? Murray Goodwin will be looking to return to his high-scoring ways, while Guy Whittall has shown excellent form recently. This leaves an extra batting place, probably, to be contested between Stuart Carlisle, Craig Wishart and Gavin Rennie. The first two have one-day centuries to their credit, but still cannot be assured of their places. Rennie, on the other hand, is probably better suited than the other two to a number seven position due to his greater ability to run the ball around the field for singles and keep the score rotating. On paper this is an embarrassment of riches, and we look for it to live up to its potential. A batting line-up like this, with Streak still to come, should never be dismissed for less than 250 in reasonable conditions.

The team departed for Bulawayo on Thursday 14 January for a four-day camp. They are based at the Streaks' ranch at Turk Mine (where they may well plan to have words with Huckle, if they can catch him) and will travel in to practise at Queens Sports Club when it is available for their use. They will then travel down to South Africa in time for the first match, against South Africa at Johannesburg, on Friday 21 January.

Andy Flower realises that his team will be under the spotlight as far as home supporters are concerned; they will be expecting an improvement in the performances of the team, and Andy is confident they can meet those expectations. A new year is like a new start, and that is what the Zimbabwean team certainly needs. Andy fully realises the importance confidence will play and the fact that his team was so lacking in that commodity in recent matches, and says that they are working on the psychology of winning.

He feels that a few very ordinary performances at the start of the season, in Singapore and Kenya, coupled with injuries to key players, led to a rapid slump in confidence. They were playing strong opposition and "if you give them an inch they are going to take more than that. Once we showed a bit of weakness, they piled in and dominated the matches against us. It can be too easy to let that snowball into a complete lack of confidence and I think we let that happen to us."

I suggested to Andy that possibly, after such success last season, including a series win in Pakistan and reaching the Super Six in the World Cup, that perhaps some of the players had lost focus and incentive, subconsciously feeling that the main mountains had been climbed and thus to a degree lost purpose, in their preparation for this season.

"I think that's a fair comment to make," he said thoughtfully. "I think there was perhaps a slight touch of complacency, which may sound strange in our situation, but as you say maybe people thought all the hard work had been done. It never will be for our country, or for any sporting country. And as you start to get complacent, you will start making mistakes. We can't afford that at all; our discipline levels and our motivational levels have to be at a peak - or else we won't compete with these sides."

Andy is a realist and still committed to the game, with ambitions still to be fulfilled. At the age of 31 he expects to be around for years to come, and has risen to the unexpected challenge of taking up the captaincy again. He is a man who leads from the front, and as the team departs for South Africa Zimbabwean supporters can be assured that they could not be in better hands.