Brandon Moyo
THE Chevrons yesterday bounced back from their opening loss to Namibia at the 2023 ICC T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier finals with a comfortable nine-wicket win over Tanzania at the United Cricket Ground in Windhoek.
Captain Sikandar Raza won the toss and elected to field, with his bowlers restricting Tanzania to a modest 96/9 in 20 overs.
The Chevrons then chased down the target in just 10.4 overs, with Tadiwanashe Marumani scoring an unbeaten 39 runs as they raced to 98/1.
However, the Chevrons’ death bowling let them down, as Tanzania managed to score 48 runs in the last four overs to finish on 96/9.
It was skipper Raza who led from the front with the ball for the Chevrons, picking up three wickets for 10 runs in his four overs, a spell that saw him named player of the match.
Fast bowler Richard Ngarava also managed to get his career best T20I figures, finishing on 3/17 in four overs as well much to the jubilation of his captain.
Other wicket takers were Ryan Burl and Tendai Chatara, who picked up one each for 11 and 14 runs respectively.
Salum Jumbe, who batted down the order for Tanzania was their top scorer with an unbeaten 24 runs from 14 deliveries while opening batter and captain, Abhik Patwa chipped in with 18 runs off 33 balls.
The only other Tanzanian batter who managed to cross double figures was Ally Kimote with 16 runs from 15 balls. In their chase, Zimbabwe lost the wicket of Innocent Kaia for 21 runs off 18 balls in the fifth over with the score on 36/1.
It was Sean Williams and Tadiwanashe Marumani who saw the team through.
Raza was pleased with the way Marumani and Ngarava played.
He was, however, not pleased with the way they finished their bowling innings.
“It’s a job well done, we try and win the game before we walk into the park and send a message. Going for 48 runs in the last four overs was unacceptable. We will come back stronger next time. Ngarava is invaluable, if we are in trouble, he is the go-to guy. I can assure you his graph will grow in the next few months.
“Tadi (Marumani) has done really well, sometimes it’s frustrating for him not to get runs. I’m happy for him that he got runs today so that his confidence is up. Good news that we are taking two days off so that some guys with niggles like Craig Ervine and Carl Mumba will rest and the fast bowlers as well,” said Raza.
The Chevrons, who are in fourth place with two points, and will next face Uganda on Sunday in a crucial match as only two teams will qualify for next year’s T20 World Cup.