So at least now they know where they stand. Had Zimbabwe pulled off the unexpected and won a tournament in which they were widely expected to struggle, there might have been premature calls for a return to Test cricket. Instead the players and management will go away knowing just how far there is to go.

What the defeat to Sri Lanka in the final proved is that Zimbabwe are somewhere between an international A team and a full-on one-day international side. Three times in this tournament they have played against second-string sides and three times they have won, yet on both occasions that they faced a Sri Lankan team with five or more first-team regulars they were soundly thrashed.

Nevertheless this has been a significantly improved Zimbabwe from the sorry side of the last five years and the effects of the new coaching and administrative structure are plain to see. Whatever the details of the murky past, finally this is a team with a future.

The ICC's recommendations to Zimbabwe Cricket have largely been put in place over the past eight months and the result is not only a more professional environment around the national team but also an encouraging domestic structure which allows the players to compete on a higher level throughout the summer.

For the most part, players are being paid on time and are earning enough to sustain themselves without having to look for alternative incomes. That's a far cry from two years ago when only a handful of players in the country were fully professional.

Beyond that the new structure extends right down to coaching more level one and two coaches and although the man in charge of that programme, former Zimbabwe international Andrew Waller, admits that progress has been slow, the intention is there and rewards will be reaped further down the line.

With the management finally providing support, the players have responded in this series and the most encouraging fact is that the large majority of this squad are under 25. What has surprised everyone in this series has been their composure. Many started their careers too young and suffered too many defeats too early, but now that they have learnt how to win they will be able to move forward with genuine confidence.

A lot of the credit for the national team's successes in this tournament is due to Alastair Campbell, who has been given free reign not only as chairman of selectors but in terms of coming up with an all-round strategy to drive Zimbabwe cricket forward. The team is now being chosen on merit, whereas selectors for the eight years prior to Campbell's arrival had been expected to meet 'goals', which were effectively quotas in disguise.

Test cricket is still some way off. There may be some embarrassingly weak nations playing the five-day game at the moment but that is no excuse for Zimbabwe to return before they are ready to play at a high level.

Wednesday's final showed that it will take more than just one season of improvement to reach that level. But this has still been Zimbabwe's tournament, and if they continue to progress at the rate they have over the past season then they will get there.