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Lawrence Moyo Head Zimpapers Sport
ALL-ROUNDER Sikandar Raza was the match-winner again as Zimbabwe beat Namibia by six wickets in the third of a five-match T20 International cricket series at the Wanderers Cricket Club in Windhoek yesterday.
Raza blasted three sixes and four fours on his way to 52 off 36 balls. He fell in the 17th over with the Chevrons still needing six runs to win, leaving Ryan Burl and Wessly Madhevere, who blasted a match winning six, to take Zimbabwe home with eight balls to spare.
It was his second successive half century after the heroic 82 not out in 35 balls on Wednesday, meaning Raza has topscored for the Chevrons in all their three matches to date, including the 39 off 35 balls in the opening match.
He is Zimbabwe’s leading scorer by far with 173 runs in three innings.
The Chevrons now lead 2-1 after a nervy five-wicket win off the last ball on Wednesday with the remaining matches set for tomorrow and Monday. Both teams are using the series to prepare for Africa’s final qualifier tournament that will be held in Namibia from November 20 to December 1 to determine two spots at the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by the West Indies and the USA.
Namibia won the toss for the first time in the series and elected to bat, hoping to continue with their dominance over the Zimbabwe bowlers.
They had scored 122/3 in 13.4 overs in the opening match of the series and then 198/3 in 20 overs in the second match.
However, it was a different scenario this time around as were 27/3 after 4.5 overs before a 67-run partnership for the fourth wicket in exactly nine overs put the hosts back in the contest.
However, Zimbabwe hit back as Namibia moved from 94/3 to 116/6 between the 14th and 18th overs, which restricted Namibia to 138/6 in their 20 overs.
For the first time in the series there was no half century for Namibia with Jan Frylinck the topscorer with 41 runs off 39 balls while JP Kotze added 31 from 28.
Five of the six bowlers used by Zimbabwe took at least a wicket with Luke Jongwe taking two for 33 while Raza was wicketless in three overs which cost 26 runs.
Richard Ngarava was a top performer for the Chevrons as he took one wicket for 18 off his four overs. Chasing a modest 139 to win, the first wicket partnership between Nick Welch and Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, who was featuring for the first time in the series, lasted just five balls as Welch was trapped lbw by Shikongo for 10.
Kamunhukamwe, who scored 36 off 32 hitting two sixes and three fours, then made 37 for the second wicket with captain Craig Ervine, who fell for 17 off 16 balls and 37 for the third wicket with Raza.
Burl was unbeaten on 15 off six balls while Madhevere was on 11 from seven.
Online Reporter