Eddie Chikamhi
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE’S chances of making the final of the ODI triangular series currently underway in the United Arab Emirates were left hanging by a thread following the heavy 158-runs defeat to Afghanistan in the second round robin match on Monday.
The Chevrons were thoroughly outplayed by the hosts at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium after they were bowled out for a meagre 136 runs, chasing a mammoth target of 294 runs.
On reflection, a win could have punched an automatic finals ticket for the Chevrons who had started the series on the front foot after beating Bangladesh by 99 runs at the weekend.
But the situation got a bit complex on Monday when Afghanistan dominated Zimbabwe, who needed to score at least 196 runs during their chase to secure a spot in Friday’s final because of a positive net run rate.
The Chevrons were undone by Sediqullah Atal’s century, a fluent 90 from Ibrahim Zadran and Rashid Khan’s four-wicket haul after Afghanistan had won the toss and elected to field.
Despite cleaning up the last six wickets for just 35 runs in the last 5.2 overs, the damage was already done at the top of the Afghans’ order. Brad Evans and Ernest Masuku took three wickets apiece for consolation.
Zimbabwe struggled from the onset of the chase, with the scoreboard pressure weighing heavily and playing against a quality opposition attack.
The top order suffered an early collapse, reminiscent of the first game against Bangladesh, as the Chevrons slipped to 43-4 in the 13th over.
Veteran Brendan Taylor admitted Afghanistan were too good for them.
“I think it was a good toss to win. I think Afghanistan came out and showed some real application and high quality on a wicket that was pretty docile. They got off to a flier, and we managed to bring it back pretty well,” said Taylor.
“Again, we were facing that sort of two-three wickets down in the power-play, and it’s very tough to come back when you’re up against some of the world’s best spinners in the middle.
“So, we needed a better foundation. It’s probably a day where we can draw a line in the sand and put this one behind us; take the lessons from it and try and turn it around as quickly as possible.”
Chevrons captain Sikandar Raza was the team’s highest run scorer after managing 48 runs, while opener Brian Bennett and Ryan Burl contributed 31 runs apiece.
Taylor also had a terrible day after he was run-out for a single, to leave Zimbabwe on 26-3 after seven overs. The veteran said Zimbabwe could have performed better on the wicket.
“It probably was slightly better to bat. It was always going to swing more in the lights, but that doesn’t ex-plain the difference between 300 and 135.
“So, we just totally got outperformed, outplayed, and there’s a lot of discussion, a lot of work to be done in the next few days. Nothing wasted; only wasted if we don’t learn from it,” said Taylor.
However, Zimbabwe are still in with a credible chance to play in the final.
But the Chevrons will have to wait for the outcome of today’s clash between Afghanistan and Bangladesh in the last round-robin fixture.
Afghanistan’s place in the final is secure after they pushed their net run rate to +3.160, effectively leaving Zimbabwe and Bangladesh to fight it out for the other spot.
The Chevrons’ net run rate fell to -0.590 with the defeat, while Bangladesh’s was left at -1.980 following their defeat to Zimbabwe in the series opener.
According to the calculations, Bangladesh must win by a significant margin, roughly 40 runs and above if batting first, or chase the target in sharply reduced overs to overturn the NRR gap and reach the final.
If Bangladesh beat Afghanistan by 39 runs or fewer and fail to flip the net run rate, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan will advance to the final.
