Online ReporterBrandon Moyo , Zimpapers Sports Hub
AFTER months of waiting for a first win, the New Year finally brought movement for Tuskers, though not quite the momentum they would have hoped for. A side that went winless in its opening four Domestic T20 matches last year has begun 2026 with a split return, one victory followed by another narrow reminder of how unforgiving this competition can be.
The Domestic T20, which paused on December 13 last year, resumed this week at Kwekwe Sports Club, offering Tuskers a chance to reset and find their footing.
They did exactly that on Monday, edging Mega Market Mountaineers by nine runs via the D/L Method to claim their first win of the season. It felt like a breakthrough moment for the Bulawayo-based outfit.
Twenty-four hours later, that optimism was tempered by heartbreak as Southern Rocks snatched a one-run win off the final ball in a thriller that left Tuskers wondering how another result had slipped away.
Six matches into the campaign, Tuskers sit on six points, with one win, four defeats and one washed-out encounter. It has been a difficult road so far for a side still searching for consistency and reward.
Against Rocks, the margins were painfully fine. A superb final over from Jalat Khan proved decisive as Southern Rocks edged Tuskers. Rocks, who began the match second on the log, struggled after choosing to bat first upon winning the toss.
Their innings never quite settled. Four wickets fell for 44 runs, and by the time they were seven down for 76, including two run outs, a modest total looked inevitable.
Rescue arrived through an enterprising eighth-wicket stand between Johnathan Campbell and Newman Nyamhuri. The pair counter attacked boldly, adding 63 runs in under six overs to lift Rocks from danger.
Nyamhuri struck 18 from 14 balls, while Campbell carried his bat for a vital 49 off 41 deliveries as Rocks posted 133 for eight.
The Tuskers bowlers shared the wickets evenly, with Tinotenda Maposa leading the way after finishing with figures of two for 21.
Tuskers’ reply stuttered from the outset. Opener Munashe Chimusoro showed the most composure at the top of the order, while support around him was limited.
None of the other top-order batters passed 12, though Chimusoro and Brian Mudzinganyama, who made 10, put on 46 for the first wicket.
The innings began to unravel as wickets fell regularly, with a turning point arriving when star batter Milton Shumba was run out for 12.
Chimusoro departed as the third wicket at 82, and by the 19th over Tuskers appeared beaten at 112 for eight.
Ernest Masuku briefly dragged the contest back, smashing two fours and a six off Arinesto Vezha in the penultimate over to leave seven required from Khan’s final six balls.
Khan responded immediately, having Ainsley Ndlovu caught before conceding a single.
With four needed from the final two deliveries, Masuku could manage only two from the last ball, as
Khan kept his nerve to seal a dramatic one run victory for Rocks.
Away from the scorelines, Tuskers have found a brighter note off the field. The franchise has scored a meaningful win in its cricket development programme after successfully installing practice nets at Mahlathini Primary School in Cowdray Park.
The project, which began towards the end of last year, marks a significant step for the school and for young aspiring cricketers in the surrounding community.
derick.khumalo