Chronicle Editor
Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter
Bulawayo Athletic Club (BAC) suffered their second defeat in three matches in the Zimbabwe T10 League match which was played at Harare Sports Club on Sunday.
The tournament started on Thursday.
After beating Westside by five wickets in their second match of the campaign on Saturday after they had lost the first one on Friday by 36 runs against Harare Kings, BAC lost their third game against Takashinga-1 by nine wickets.
In the team’s first match, Harare Kings batting first scored 118-5 in their 10 overs, Sikandar Raza top scoring for them with 44 followed by Cephas Zhuwao with 33 runs. Brandon Mavuta, and Tanatswa Bechani took two wickets each for BAC.
BAC was restricted to 82-8 in 10 overs and Harare Kings won by 36 runs to register their second win of the tournament.
In their second match, bowling first after winning the toss, BAC restricted Westside to 68-5 in 10 overs. Seamer Charlton Tshuma took two wickets for 13 runs in his two overs, while spinner Tanatswa Bechani took one wicket for just eight runs in his overs. Veteran fast bowler Chris Mpofu also took one wicket for nine runs. Kevin Kasuza top scored for Westside with 31 runs on the board.
Chasing what seemed like an easy target, BAC started well with the bat, reaching 65-1 after eight overs. Needing just four runs to win in 12 balls, there was a near collapse for the boys from Bulawayo as they lost four wickets in the ninth over.
Despite Frank Mwazviita’s remarkable feat of four wickets in an over, BAC managed to cross the finish line and secure a five-wicket win on the day. Nyasha Mayavo top scored with 32 runs, followed by captain Nkosana Mpofu with 27 runs.
In their third game against Takashinga-1, the Bulawayo-based team were asked to bat first and they put in 54-9 in their 10 overs. Captain Nkosana Mpofu and Tanatswa Bechani were the only batters who reached double figures for BAC, scoring 15 and 16 respectively.
Takashinga chased the target comfortably, losing only the wicket of Tinashe Kamunhukamwe who scored 19 runs. Takashinga chased down the target in just over six overs.
On the first day of the tournament, Gladiators played against Lions and Lions won the match by 40 runs after restricting Gladiators to 80-7 chasing 121 runs to win.
The other match played on the opening day was between Takashinga-1 and Harare Kings and Harare Kings won by five wickets. Batting first, Takashinga posted 78-5 in their 10 overs with Shingirai Masakadza top scoring with 37 runs and Joylord Gumbie scored 13.
Harare Kings managed to chase down the target in nine overs, scoring 79-5 to record a five-wicket win. Jonathan Campbell scored 21 out and Sikandar Raza also scored 21.
The last match of day one was between Takashinga-2 and Great Zimbabwe Patriots, which Great Zimbabwe won by 56 runs. Batting first, Great Zimbabwe posted 119-6 in their 10 overs and they managed to restrict Takashinga to 63-8 in 10 overs. Sydney Murombo stole the limelight on day one of the tournament after he took a five-wicket haul for Great Zimbabwe. He took five wickets for just six runs in his two overs.
After BAC’s defeat by Harare Kings, the other match on Friday was between Gladiators and Takashinga-2. Gladiators, batting first, set Takashinga a target of 102 to win, Lennox Chando top scored with 29 runs, followed by Tinashe Chimbambo with 27. Takashinga-2 were restricted to 58-6 in 10 overs to lose by 43 runs.
The last match of the second day was between Takashinga-1 and Westside and Westside won the match by six wickets after being set a target of 101. Westside chased it in just over eight overs courtesy of Definate Mawadzi’s 24 not out from 13 balls.
In other matches played on Saturday, Lions thumped Takashinga-2 by 10 wickets. Batting first, Takashinga posted 45-7 in their 10 overs with their top scorer being Tinashe Nenhunzi with 11 runs.
In response, Lions chased down the target in just over four overs without losing with Elton Chigumbura scoring 27 not out and Blessed Muzite scoring 14 runs.
The other match was between Great Zimbabwe Patriots and Gladiators and Great Zimbabwe won by 23 runs. After scoring 108-3 in their 10 overs courtesy of Costa Zhou’s 32 runs and Richmond Mutumbami’s 29, Great Zimbabwe restricted Gladiators to 85-6 in 10 overs. Tinashe Chimbambo top scored for Gladiators with 23 runs.
Yesterday also saw Harare Kings registering their third win after they beat Westside by six wickets. Harare Kings restricted Westside to 81-8 in their 10 overs and Sikandar Raza took two wickets for 19 runs. Kings chased down the target in just over eight overs to register their third win of the campaign. Raza again was the star with the bat, scoring 33 off 16 balls.
The other match played yesterday was between Great Zimbabwe and Lions. Great Zimbabwe batting first scored 131-3 in their 10 overs and they managed to restrict Lions to 97-9 to register a 34 runs win.
Tadiwanashe Marumani hit the first half century of the tournament, scoring 69 runs.
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