Online Reporter
Tinashe Kusema and Don Makanyanga-Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE and Scotland were yesterday forced to share the points while India and West Indies registered big wins as the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup finally got the ball rolling.
The match between Zimbabwe and Scotland was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to the wet outfield at Takashinga Sports Club in Highfield.
In fact, two of the scheduled three matches were affected by the weather as the match between India and the United States saw the run chase reduced to 36 overs after lightning protocols caused a long stoppage during the second innings.
In the end, four-time champions India emerged victorious by six wickets using the Duckworth Lewis Method.
India won the toss and bowled out the US for a paltry 107 runs.
Henil Patel was the Americans’ chief tormentor with the Indian quick finishing with figures of five wickets for 16 runs.
India’s target was reduced to 96 runs in 36 overs after lightning protocols caused a long stoppage in the game.
The former champions even went on to survive a few scares as they lost four wickets on their way to 99 runs led by Abhigyan Kundu’s unbeaten 42 runs off 41 balls.
In Namibia, West Indies made light work of debutants Tanzania as the Caribbean youngest cruised to a five-wicket victory at the High Performance Oval, Windhoek.
West Indies won the toss and quickly bowled out Tanzania for 122 runs.
Vitel Lawes helped the Caribbean Islanders exert their dominance on the match, taking three wickets for 23 runs while the duo of Shaquan Belle and Micah McKenzie chipped in with two scalps each.
R’jai Gittens and Jonathan Van Lange also got in on the act, the duo finishing with figures of one for 27 runs and one for 18 runs respectively.
Tanzania were hardly in the game as wickets fell at regular intervals with only four batters managing to reach double digit figures.
Opener Dylan Thakrar top-scored for his side with 26 runs off 38 balls while his partner Darpan Jobanputra chipped in with 19 runs off 46 balls.
In response, West Indies raced to the target with opener Tanex Francis’ 52 runs off 55 balls and top-order batter Jewel Andrew’s 44 runs off 44 balls providing the anchor of the chase.
The two even shared 80-run off 79 balls second wicket partnership that did most of the damage during the chase.
Francis and Augustino Mwemele finished as the pick of the Tanzanian bowlers with the duo taking two wickets for 23 runs and two for 17 runs respectively.
Zimbabwe, however, emerged as the biggest losers of the day as they missed out on a chance to get their World Cup campaign off on a positive note.
With England and Pakistan waiting, Scotland looked primed for the taking and a win over the European nation could have given the co-hosts some momentum going into two difficult match ups.
Zimbabwe now turn their attention to a return to Takashinga for a date against England on Sunday, provided the weather holds up.
Despite yesterday’s match being called off without a ball being bowled it had attracted a sizeable crowd at Takashinga and the event remained a memorable one.
Zimbabwe Cricket chairperson, Tavengwa Mukuhlani, whose board have commendably spread the international game around the country, described the hosting of the World Cup in Zimbabwe as historic.
“For us, this is a big jump, a big step in the right direction in the sense that this is the first time that we are hosting an ICC U-19 World Cup and it brings with it infrastructure development.
“It brings with it a lot of goodwill on the part of the country.
“We have built that over time by hosting the qualifiers for women and for the men.
“But the World Cup is the biggest event for the ICC and more so that we are co-hosting with South Africa and Namibia in the main World Cup in 2027.
“So, this Under-19 World Cup 2026 helps us, one as Zimbabwe Cricket, two as a country to prepare us for the main World Cup which comes in 2027,” said Mukuhlani.
