By Perkins-Tino Bare.
Harare. (News Of The South) – Zimbabwe Cricket failed to gain any consolation as they went down once again to India by 83 runs in the 3rd and final ODI as India wrapped up the series with a whitewash of the disheartened Chevrons.
After winning the toss then again sending the Indians to bat, it was to be more of the same from the Chevrons as they just could not notch up a victory for the fans who had come in their numbers even given it was a Tuesday.
Zimbabwe started off well and they picked up two early wickets as Neville Madziva continued with his good run with the ball finishing the day with two wickets. Though he was slightly expensive he was able to get that breakthrough and at some point the Chevrons were well on course. Hamilton Masakadza was vocal on the day as he tried to encourage the boys to get 3 wickets in the first 10 but it was not to be. This is a trait that has been missing amongst our players and they do not often encourage one another when they are on the field. It`s dead silence on the pitch and the breakthroughs tend to be individual efforts, no backing from the team.
Zimbabwe were able to also get a couple more early wickets and they had India, once again, reeling at 82-4 but once again they failed to finish them off as the Indians recovered to 276-7 setting up a target of 277 for the Chevrons to win. This is the frustrating thigh amongst the Chevrons for on Friday they also had the Indians at 83-5 but then failed to finish them off. Also this past World Cup at some point they had South Africa in deep trouble only to let them crawl their way back into the contest.
The pick of the bowlers for Zimbabwe were the veterans Hamilton Masakadza and Prosper Utseya who were not only economical but were also able to get some wickets in the process. Masakadza ended his allotted 10 on 38/1 whilst Pro finished his on 41/1. The two were economical and were vital in keeping India`s run rate low. Graeme Cremer on the other end was expensive especially at the end as he was being hit for 9 and 10 per over. It got worse when the Binny show got underway after a dismissal as Donald Tiripano and Chamu Chibhabha struggled to contain the Indians at the end. There were big overs at the end most notably two which were hit for 15 runs.
India recovered thanks too debutant Manish Pandey who got a half-century on debut becoming only the 12th Indian to do so. He went on to score 71 which is a good score for a debutant. They also powered their way back into the contest with the help of Jadhav who scored a century as he went on to 105 not out.
In reply Zimbabwe were bowled out for 193 in the 43rd over and though the contest was well within reach for a moment, they kept losing regular wickets and were therefore not able to garner anything meaningful out of the match.
Hamilton Masakadza`s poor form with the bat however continued as he went out for a paltry 7 runs from 24 balls. He looks set to join Vusi Sibanda since he has failed to sparkle in all 3 ODI`s but he could as well be retained considering that he is proving valuable with the ball especially in the absence of Tendai Chatara and Sean Williams who`s out with a knee injury.
Chamu Chibhabha also played well as he had 82. The only positive thing that came out of Zimbabwe`s inning certainly has to be Regis Chakabva who partnered up well with Chamu Chibhabha and for a moment, thought it could be the answer to our problem of failing to build a lasting partnership.
The two combined well as they showed an understanding which I had not seen amongst our batsmen for a long time. Trust me, what was on display was more like brotherly love between the two as they watched each other`s back and were not hesitant to take up the quick singles. The two are also great athletes as they were quick in-between the wickets and were also discrete enough to call off unnecessary runs which could have ended messy. Another peculiar thing about this partnership is that it eventually took a stumping, and not a run out to break it, that`s just how well the two understood each other on the day. Regis Chakabva played well when he came as that Number 3 slot on the batting line-up and going forward he could as well fill that slot till Uncle Ham sorts out his form which he has been struggling with.
The rest were just awful as well as the skipper Elton Chigumbura, once again failed to kick on from the start he had had to the series as he departed for just 10 runs. The middle order as well didn`t bring much as they all could not hold the fall of wickets which eventually determined the winner. The Chevron continued to lose regular wickets and with Malcolm Waller failing as a batsman we then wonder what his role is going to be in the team since the ICC banned him from bowling.
The fans however are slowly losing patience with the team as they realise that we have won only once in the last 21 ODI`s and Zimbabwe, after having started the series rather encouragingly by losing out narrowly by 4 runs they then just got worse with each match as they lost the 2nd by 62 runs and then the 3rd by 83 runs. What is really frustrating to most be the fact that other nation are developing well and we seem to be doing the exact opposite. Bangladesh beat the Indian 1st Team in an ODI series yet we got a whitewash from India`s 2nd string side. Also at this rate even the nations under the developmental programme are progressing well and come the next World Cup we are surely headed for the qualifiers which these duds may just end up losing out as well.
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