Zimbabwe vs West Indies turns out to be a nightmare for West Indies. West Indies cricket has no one to blame but themselves for a stunning defeat in ICC World Cup qualifiers. Hosts Zimbabwe registered a remarkable win over West Indies and strengthen their chances for qualification in the 2023 ODI World Cup. The crowd in Harare was roaring in delight as the favorites West Indies received an embarrassing loss.
Zimbabwe vs West Indies: Rivalry Begins
An amazing victory of 35 runs by Zimbabwe over West Indies at the Harare Sports Club started a new rivalry. Joylord Gumbie and Craig Ervine took advantage of the new ball and started well, but a little collapse of 3 for 27 forced Zimbabwe back to the rebuilding process. Zimbabwe Captain and Player-of-the-Match Sikandar Raza was as amazing as always. Raza added 87 runs for the fifth wicket with the help of Ryan Burl. Muzarabani and Chatara also added a very useful and probably match-winning last-wicket stand
of 25 runs which helps Zimbabwe to reach a challenging total of 268.
Ground Fielding and catching of the West Indies was poor as they dropped 4 catches which let them down. They dropped Raza on 1 and 7, Burl on 39, and Muzarabani on 6. After the match West Indies captain Shai Hope said “Catches let us down, plain and simple,”.
Defending 268 was never easy, especially against West Indies where all 11 players can bat. But an Inspiring performance by bowlers led by their captain Raza who has done an exceptionally good job While defending the total. Tendai Chatara was a little expensive at the start of the inning but he returned and dismissed the crucial wicket of Jason Holder when he was batting well with Roston Chase and threatening to take the game away from Zimbabwe.
WI lost both their openers in the powerplay but Kyle Mayers continues his good form and added 64 runs with Shai Hope for the third wicket partnership. Mayers falls to Wellington Masakadza picked soon after his fifty, and then Raza castled Hope and created a huge dent in chasing. Chatara’s dismissed Holder which almost ended all the hopes for West Indies. He also took the final two wickets to end the West Indies inning.
West Indies could still qualify:
Zimbabwe vs West Indies turns out to be a forgettable match for West Indies. Although West Indies lost this game, there are strong chances that they could still qualify for the ODI World Cup 2023. West Indies have reached in Super 6, but need to be very careful in upcoming matches. They need to improve their catching and mindset while chasing. West Indies has a good batting line-up, they just need to believe themselves.
Brief Scores:
Zimbabwe: 268 in 49.5 overs (Raza 68, Burl 50, Ervine 47; Keemo Paul 3-61) beat WI 233 in 44.4 overs (Mayers 56; Chatara 3-52, Ngarava 2-25) by 35 runs.