Pakistan Shaheens – 295-9 in 50 overs (Omair Yousuf 153, Kamran Ghulam 55, Haseebullah Khan 22; Brad Evans 5/62, Wellington Masakadza 2/45, Blessing Muzarabani 1/51)
Zimbabwe Choose – 299-3 in 47.3 overs (Craig Ervine 161, Joylord Gumbie 111, Wessly Madhevere 9*; Shahnawaz Dahani 2/60, Aamer Jamal 1/47)
Zimbabwe Choose received by seven wickets
There was a powerful match at Harare Sports activities Membership on Tuesday when good centuries from Craig Ervine and Joylord Gumbie powered the Zimbabwe Choose group to a seven-wicket victory over Pakistan Shaheens of their fourth one-day match.
The pair nearly set a brand new Zimbabwean document as they placed on 277 for the second wicket.
For the primary time within the sequence the house facet received the toss and put the Pakistanis in to bat first.
Muhammad Hurraira (17) and Haseebullah Khan (22) made a good begin, scoring 29 collectively in seven overs earlier than Blessing Muzarabani bowled out the harmful Hurraira.
Nevertheless, that solely introduced in an much more prolific opponent in Yousuf, and he was to dominate just about the remainder of the innings.
When Abdul Bangalzai adopted with out scoring, the rating was 55 for 3 within the 14th over and the hosts had been on high.
However this began to vary, as Kamran Ghulam joined Yousuf and the pair started to show the match of their favour.
It was greater than 25 additional overs earlier than the Zimbabweans broke via once more, as this stand added 139 for the fourth wicket at nearly a run a ball.
Having reached his fifty, Ghulam drove Wellington Masakadza exhausting and straight for a lofted 4, however when he tried it once more off the subsequent supply, the crafty bowler made him sky a catch and he departed for 55 off 79 balls.
Yousuf continued his assault, mastering all of the bowlers, whereas his remaining companions got here and went fairly cheaply, most of them dismissed whereas hitting out for fast runs.
His finest partnership was 58 for the seventh wicket in solely 4.2 overs with Qasim Akram, who made 16.
Akram was caught off Brad Evans within the forty ninth over, which was one for the Zimbabwe Choose facet, as the brand new man Aamer Jamal was caught off the second supply.
After a single was scored, Evans then lastly eliminated Yousuf himself – the batter backed away to offer himself room to slash on the off facet, however straight supply knocked again his off stump.
Yousuf had scored a powerful 153 off solely 126 deliveries, with 4 sixes and 14 fours.
The final pair managed to scramble one other 11 runs with out dismissal earlier than the innings closed on the daunting whole of 295 for 9 wickets, greater than half of which had been scored by one man.
Evans completed with a five-wicket haul that price him 62 runs, whereas probably the most economical bowler was Masakadza who took two for 45 in his 10 overs.
When the Zimbabweans batted they rapidly misplaced Tadiwanashe Marumani, who was caught off Shahnawaz Dahani within the second over after scoring only one boundary.
Gumbie and Ervine then set themselves to construct a powerful basis as a launching pad for his or her very tough victory bid.
They did a positive job as they stored the rating ticking together with fast runs, whereas taking boundaries off any unfastened deliveries, they usually had been nonetheless collectively, on the verge of their fifties, when the hundred went up within the twentieth over.
Each had been on 49, and Gumbie reached his fifty first off 63 balls, whereas Ervine adopted later in the identical over off 65 balls.
Then Ervine determined it was time to hit out, and he started to assault the bowling with good success, leaving Gumbie behind.
In full command, he raced to his century off 99 balls, and celebrated by hitting Hussain Talat for 4 fours in an over.
Gumbie now accelerated too and his century got here off 112 balls, whereas Ervine raced on in the direction of 150.
It was only a pity that this magnificent win couldn’t have been achieved within the grand method, with each batters unbeaten, however simply 11 runs wanting victory Ervine tried to look a ball from Aamer Jamal down the leg facet and was given out caught on the wicket.
His rating was 161, which he made off 144 balls, hitting three sixes and 19 fours.
It was good to see Jamal warmly congratulating Ervine as he walked off, a positive piece of sportsmanship on the sphere.
The second-wicket partnership was value 277 runs, which was solely two runs wanting the Zimbabwean Listing A partnership document, an unbroken 279 by Andy and Grant Flower for the third wicket for Mashonaland towards Midlands at Kwekwe in 2002/03.
From the subsequent ball he confronted, Gumbie flicked Dahani down in the direction of third man, solely to be brilliantly caught by Jamal there – his 111 took 124 balls and included 10 fours.
With 5 overs left, Wessly Madhevere and Milton Shumba performed fastidiously earlier than Madhevere top-edged an tried huge hit over the keeper’s head for 4 to win the match with 2.3 overs to spare.
Dahani was the very best of the Pakistani bowlers, taking two wickets for 60 runs.
The Zimbabweans now take an unbeatable three-one lead within the six-match sequence.
Be a part of 10,520 different subscribers