India needed only 15 overs to inflict a crushing six-wicket defeat on Zimbabwe at Queens Sports Club on Saturday in the first of two Twenty20 matches over the weekend.
The Indians restricted a defensive minded Zimbabwe to 111-9 in their 20 overs and overtook this poor effort with five overs and much of the afternoon to spare, coasting to 112-4.
Yusuf Pathan top-scored with an aggressive 37 not out and picked up the man of the match award for his efforts. Virat Kohli, undefeated on 26, and Suresh Raina (28) also shared the spoils.
PHOTO: AFP
It was all too easy in the end, but India did have their scares. They lost Murali Vijay with only seven runs on the board when he popped up an easy catch to Prosper Utseya. Then the departure of Numan Ojha on 12 had them on the back foot.
Raina eased the crisis, before left-arm spinner Ray Price claimed two wickets in his first over, removing both Raina and Rohit Sharma. It was Price’s 34th birthday, but it wasn’t quite the happy day he would have hoped for — his two wickets cost 24 runs in two overs.
At 48-4, it looked a little rocky for India, but Kohli and Pathan saw them home with a flurry of sixes and boundaries as the pressure was released.
It was not so much an Indian success as a Zimbabwe failure of batting tactics. The main culprit was Craig Ervine, who needed 47 balls for his 30 runs. Chamu Chibhabha made 40 from 30 balls, but with the in-form Brendan Taylor going for 15 and fellow opener Hamilton Masakadza making just 1, Zimbabwe were always struggling to post an imposing total.
Better news for Zimbabwe cricket is that they will make their Test cricket comeback with a home series against Bangladesh next May.
Zimbabwe withdrew from Tests in January 2006 after being left depleted following confrontations between senior players and the Zimbabwe Cricket board.
Board chairman Peter Chingoka announced the return on Saturday during a visit by International Cricket Council (ICC) president David Morgan and chief executive Haroon Lorgat.
“We will resume our Test commitments against Bangladesh at home in May 2011,” Chingoka said. “We will then have gradual progression afterwards by playing sides we think we can compete with, like the West Indies and New Zealand.”
Chingoka also said Cricket South Africa have offered Zimbabwe a one-off Test every year, starting next year.
“We are indebted to Cricket South Africa for their continuous support,” he said.
The long-serving boss believes the Zimbabwe team will rise up to the challenge of Test demands.
“We are improving all the time,” he said. “We now have a strong first-class structure. Our player base has broadened. With the results we’ve been posting, our players are beginning to show indication of maturity.”
The ICC agreed Zimbabwe was ready to return to Test cricket after implementing the recommendations of an ICC task force that visited Zimbabwe in November 2008. Chief among them was re-establishing a credible domestic championship, electing an inclusive board and achieving better results in one-day internationals, Twenty20s and four-day games.
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