adminA SUPERB century partnership between Malcolm Waller and PJ Moor, who both scored fifties in a crisis for Midlands Rhinos, was in the end the main factor in their narrow two-wicket victory over Harare Metropolitan Eagles in Kwekwe yesterday.
It was a match that displayed the human fallibility of cricketers even more than usual, with batting collapses, needless gifting of valuable wickets and poor fielding quite commonplace — but these ingredients did result in an interesting match where the result was in doubt until the last ball. This match was between the bottom two teams on the Pro50 Championship table — the winner would still have an outside chance of winning the competition if Bulawayo Metropolitan Tuskers did not win in Mutare.
However, the Tuskers victory over Mountaineers settled the matter, and Rhinos can only celebrate having moved from bottom place up to second, with a match to play. On a fresh sunny morning at Kwekwe Sports Club, Rhinos won the toss and put Eagles in to bat on a pitch that had some early movement for the seamers before flattening out mid-morning.
Neville Madziva and Tinashe Panyangara opened the bowling to Regis Chakabva and Chamu Chibhabha. The bowling was tight, the batsmen had to play with caution, and Madziva soon got his reward with a fine delivery that moved away from Chakabva (2) and took the edge of his bat for a catch to the keeper; eight for one in the fifth over.
In his next over Tino Mutombodzi was out in almost exactly the same manner, edging another fine delivery from Madziva to the keeper; 12 for two in the seventh over. The first boundary did not come until the ninth over, when Chibhabha drove a slightly overpitched ball from Madziva straight for four to take the score to 19 for two.
Panyangara was even more niggardly, bowling his first five overs for only six runs, before slipping in a slow full toss that Chibhabha hit wide of mid-on for four.
The batsmen now grew in confidence, helped by some rather sloppy fielding. Sikandar Raza was settling into a very useful partnership with Chibhabha, but just as Eagles were starting to pull ahead Raza cut a ball uppishly from the medium-paced Tafara Chingwara, and was caught low down at backward point for 17; 70 for three in the 18th over.
The final matches of the competition take place next Tuesday, when the new Pro50 Championship winners Tuskers take on the bottom team Eagles in Harare, while Mountaineers and Rhinos play off for second place in Kwekwe.
Scores
Harare Metropolitan Eagles – 174 all out in 42.1 overs (Chamu Chibhabha 59, Kudakwashe Bhasikoro 24, Nathan Waller 21; Graeme Cremer 3/25, Neville Madziva 2/30, Mike Chinouya 2/38)
Midlands Rhinos – 176-8 in 37.2 overs (PJ Moor 67, Malcolm Waller 57, Graeme Cremer 29*; Tino Mutombodzi 3/7, Brighton Zhawi 3/48)
Midlands Rhinos won by two wickets. — Zimcricket
Online Reporter