By Peter Della Penna
In a very disappointing display, USA lost their ICC U-19 World Cup
Plate Championship playoff match by five wickets to Zimbabwe on Monday
afternoon at Nelson Park in Napier, New Zealand. Man of the Match
Natsia M’Shangwe took 3 for 13 in the field for Zimbabwe before scoring
27 opening the innings to kickstart Zimbabwe’s chase.
After
overnight and morning rain delayed the start of play, the match was
reduced to 41 overs. Zimbabwe won the toss and didn’t hesitate to send
USA in to bat, taking full advantage of the conditions in Napier.
Picture (Right): Andy Mohammed tries to cut this ball from
Nathan Waller, but manages only to edge it behind to become USA's
second wicket to fall. [Picture Courtesy: Ganesh Sanap]
“The pitch had been under the covers for the last three or four hours
so I thought the ball would do a little bit early on,” said Dylan
Higgins, Zimbabwe U-19 captain.
While the bowlers did get the ball to move around quite a bit, USA’s
batting put in a shocking performance to be all out for 115, which
included six batsmen out without scoring. The first of those six was
opener Steven Taylor, who sent a rank long hop from medium pacer Nathan
Waller straight to Higgins at cover with the score at 4 in the second
over. Greg Sewdial then joined Andy Mohammed and constructed a decent
partnership of 34 runs, but it wound up being the biggest partnership
of the innings for USA when Mohammed got out to a similar ball from
Waller, edging it behind to the keeper Dean Mazhawidza for 9 to make it
38 for 2 in the 10th over.
After that, wickets tumbled at will for the Zimbabwean bowling attack.
While Waller finished with three, it was M’Shangwe’s leg-spin that
really dismantled USA. After clean bowling Shiva Vashishat for 17 to
make it 91 for 6, the flood gates opened up and he teamed up with
off-spinner Simon Mugava to rip through the tail as numbers eight
through ten, Saami Siddiqui, Regis Burton and Hammad Shahid, all got
out for ducks. Muhammad Asad Ghous was the last man out for 21,
finishing behind extras, 24, and Sewdial, 35, as USA’s third highest
scorer in the innings.
Post Match Interview vs. Zimbabwe with Shivnaraine from Peter Della Penna on Vimeo.
M’Shangwe set the tone for Zimbabwe’s batting order when he hit the
first ball of the second innings for six off Naseer Jamali. He teamed
up with Tinotenda Mutombodzi to put on 42 runs for the first wicket and
from there Zimbabwe never looked back.
Saqib Saleem tried to give USA hope and should have had a wicket first
ball when he came on in the eighth over as he got M’Shangwe to sky a
top edge to midwicket, only for it to be put down by Ghous. It was one
of four USA drops, none of which could be afforded with such a small
total to defend. Saleem finished with four wickets as it was clear
Zimbabwe were clueless against spin. However, the total of 115 was
something that gave USA’s bowlers no chance to defend. Most likely 30
more runs would have been enough. Instead, Peter Moor finished with 21
not out to see Zimbabwe over the line by five wickets.
USA will now face Afghanistan in the 15th/16th place match on Wednesday
at Nelson Park while Zimbabwe will play Hong Kong in the 13th/14th
place game. The last time these teams played, Afghanistan beat USA by
36 runs at the World Cup Qualifier in Toronto last September.
Official Scorecard
ICC U-19 World Cup Plate Championship
USA vs. Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe won by 5 wickets
Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field
Man of the Match: Natsia M’Shangwe
USA Batting
Batsman Runs Balls 4s 6s Dismissal
SR Taylor 0 3 0 0 ct Higgins bowled Waller
A Mohammed 9 28 1 0 ct Mazhawidza+ bowled Waller
GR Sewdial 35 45 5 0 ct Mazhawidza+ bowled Price
S Saleem 0 1 0 0 bowled Waller
RG Corns 0 5 0 0 ct Mazhawidza bowled Price
S Vashishat* 17 47 2 0 bowled M’Shangwe
MA Ghous 21 54 1 0 bowled Chatara
SM Siddiqui+ 0 1 0 0 LBW Mugava
RG Burton 0 2 0 0 ct Waller bowled M’Shangwe
H Shahid 0 8 0 0 ct Waller bowled M’Shangwe
N Jamali 9 5 2 0 not out
Total Extras 24 (0 no balls, 0 byes, 3 leg byes, 21 wides)
Team Total 115 all out in 33.1 overs
Fall of wicket: 4/1 (Taylor), 38/2 (Mohammed), 40/3 (Saleem), 41/4 (Corns),
69/5 (Sewdial), 91/6 (Vashishat), 96/7 (Siddiqui), 97/8 (Burton),
99/9 (Shahid), 115/10 (Ghous).
Zimbabwe Bowling Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets
T Chatara 5.1-1-11-1
N Waller 7-0-42-3
CW Price 6-0-18-2
SM Mugava 8-1-16-1
N M’Shangwe 6-1-13-3
DR Higgins 1-0-12-0
Zimbabwe Batting
Batsman Runs Balls 4s 6s Dismissal
N M’Shangwe 27 30 1 2 ct Corns bowled Saleem
TC Mutombodzi 39 57 5 0 ct Sewdial bowled Saleem
N Waller 2 10 0 0 bowled Saleem
M Zambuko 13 15 0 1 ct Sewdial bowled Saleem
DR Higgins* 10 27 1 0 ct Corns bowled Ghosu
PJ Moor 21 19 3 0 not out
A Lindsay 2 16 0 0 not out
Total Extras 5 (0 no balls, 0 byes, 1 leg bye, 4 wides)
Team Total 119 for 5 in 29 overs
Did not bat: D Mazhawidza+, SM Mugava, CW Price, T Chatara.
Fall of wicket: 42/1 (M’Shangwe), 61/2 (Waller), 74/3 (Mutombodzi),
95/4 (Zambuko), 105/5 (Higgins).
USA Bowling Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets
N Jamali 4-0-19-0
H Shahid 3-0-14-0
S Saleem 9-1-38-4
MA Ghous 8-0-32-1
RG Corns 5-1-15-0