Zimbabwe beat Canada in Under-19 World Cup warm-up clash

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Zimbabwe Under-19s – 208-7 in 48 overs (Panashe Taruvinga 47, Tashinga Makoni 39, David Bennett 34; Parmveer Kharoud 3/39, Kairav Sharma 2/46, Gurnek Johal Singh 1/29)

Canada Under-19s – 182 all out in 37.5 overs (revised target: 185 in 38 overs)(Jash Shah 49, Ethan Gibson 39, Anoop Chima 33; Victor Chirwa 2/30, Alex Falao 2/42, Matthew Schonken 1/17)

 

Zimbabwe Under-19s won by two runs (Duckworth-Lewis)

 

The Zimbabwe Under-19 side defeated the Canada Under-19s by two runs in a rain-affected ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022 warm-up match played at Basseterre in St Kitts and Nevis on Sunday.

 

Put in to bat first, the Zimbabwe Under-19s made 208 runs for seven wickets in 48 overs, with Panashe Taruvinga’s knock of 47 being the team’s top individual score, while Tashinga Makoni and David Bennett also made notable contributions of 39 and 34 to the total.

 

They opened their innings with Connor Mitchell and Taruvinga facing the bowling of Parmveer Kharoud and Ethan Gibson.

 

At six, in the third over, Mitchell was the first to depart when he was bowled by Kharoud after making five runs off nine deliveries.

 

In his next over, the same bowler caused further damage by claiming the big wicket of captain Emmanuel Bawa, who was caught by Mihir Patel having made 10, including a boundary, off 11 balls.

 

The Zimbabwe Under-19s however recovered from the early wobble as Taruvinga and David Bennett lifted the side from 16 for two with a 69-run stand for the third wicket that was only broken in the 21st over when the latter, who faced 52 balls and scored 34, with fours and a single six, was caught by Kharoud off the bowling of Sheel Patel.

 

Taruvinga’s fine innings finally came to an end in the 28th over after he was bowled by Kairav Sharma having made 47, including five fours and one six, off 77 deliveries.

 

His dismissal left the Zimbabwe Under-19s on 111 for four and in the next over it was 117 for five after Rogan Wolhuter, who chipped in with 14 runs off 23 balls, became Kharoud’s third scalp of the game.

 

Brian Bennett also contributed 14, with two fours, off the 30 deliveries he faced before he was next out at 150 for six in the 41st over.

 

Makoni and Victor Chirwa added 41 runs in a seventh-wicket partnership that was broken when Makoni, who scored 39, including three boundaries, off 60 balls, was bowled by Sharma, leaving the total at 191 for seven after exactly 46 overs.

 

There was to be no further damage as the Zimbabwe Under-19s innings closed at 208 for seven in 48 overs – two overs lost to rain – with Chirwa hitting two fours and one six to remain unbeaten with a 22-ball 28, alongside Matthew Schonken who made four.

 

Kharoud was the pick of the Canada Under-19 bowlers with three wickets for 39 runs off his eight overs, followed by Sharma whose two scalps came at a cost of 46 runs off his 10 overs.

 

Rain continued to disrupt the match, resulting in the Canada Under-19s having to face a revised target of 185 from 38 overs.

 

Their chase got off to a steady start with a 50-run opening stand before Alex Falao gave the Zimbabwe Under-19s a breakthrough by having Anoop Chima, who scored five fours on his way to 33 (32 balls), caught by Matthew Schonken.

 

Mihir Patel was the next to go, for six, after he was stumped by Wolhuter, with Chirwa being the bowler; 74 for two in the 16th over.

 

The other Canada Under-19 opening batter, Jash Shah, was looking good but at 104 in the 24th over, he became the third wicket to fall when he was caught and bowled by Mitchell just a run short of fifty – his 49 came off 89 balls and included four fours.

 

Chirwa effected the run-out of Arjuna Sukhu (3) before Schonken had Mohit Prashar (17) caught by David Bennett, leaving their score at 126 for five in the 29th over.

 

Falao then claimed his second wicket of the match by bowling Gurnek Johal Singh for 16; 176 for six in the 35th over.

 

In the next over, without a run added to the total, Ethan Gibson’s fighting innings of 39, with four fours and one six, off 30 deliveries, came to an end, with Mngcini Dube claiming the scalp with the help of Bawa who held on to a catch.

 

Sharma was run out for one, quickly followed by Kharoud who was stumped for a duck by Wolhuter again off the bowling of Chirwa; 179 for nine in the 37th over.

 

The Canada Under-19s now required six runs to win off the last eight balls, but they could only add three more before the Zimbabwe Under-19s ran out Sheel Patel off the penultimate delivery of the match to claim a morale-boosting two-run victory using the Duckworth-Lewis system.

 

On Tuesday, the Zimbabwe Under-19s will face the Bangladesh Under-19s in their second warm-up game at the same venue before the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022 proper, which is being staged in the West Indies, gets underway.

 

Meanwhile, the four Zimbabwe Under-19 players who tested positive for COVID-19 a week ago have since returned negative results and will be expected to join the rest of the squad upon completion of their mandatory quarantine period.

 

SOURCE: ZIMBABWE CRICKET