Australia suffer historic three-wicket loss to Zimbabwe in tri-series shock

September 1, 2014

Zimbabwe historic

Sep 1: Australia have suffered a shambolic defeat at the hands of cricket minnows Zimbabwe in front of a rocking crowd at Harare Sports Club.

The No.10-ranked African nation exposed Australia for their poor batting, lack of spin options and mistakes in the field in a fairy tale three-wicket triumph.

It's just Zimbabwe's second ever win against Australia in ODI cricket - the last time it happened was at the 1983 World Cup.

When No.9 batsman Prosper Utseya brought up the winning runs with a towering six with 12 balls remaining, teammates flooded the pitch in celebration.

The embarrassing result for the world No.1 Australians means they aren't yet assured of qualifying for Saturday's tri-series final against South Africa.

Only three Australian batsmen made it past 20, with skipper Michael Clarke's courageous 68 not out despite aggravating a hamstring injury about all that held the total of 9-209 together - a record low score against battlers Zimbabwe.

After bucking the trend so far this tri-series and electing to bat first, Australia couldn't cope with Zimbabwe's spin battalion who combined to take 6-117 from 36 overs on a raging turner.

In response, Australia were under-equipped for the conditions, with not enough support for Nathan Lyon (4-44 from 10) in the spin department.

Zimbabwean captain Elton Chigumbura's unbeaten 52 led his team to one of their greatest wins.

Needing 44 off 60 with three wickets in hand, Zimbabwe were given the life they needed two overs later when Chigumbura survived a running mix-up thanks to an off throw from Mitchell Starc at mid-on.

Starc (2-41) and James Faulkner cracked under pressure with wides and no balls at the death and Chigumbura and Prosper Utseya (30no) combined for the final 55 runs.

Clarke re-aggravated his hamstring when on 62 and, after getting to the point where he could barely hobble between wickets, retired hurt.

The captain will now fly back to Australia for treatment and is a serious doubt for the upcoming Test series against Pakistan.

But in another display of grit under pressure - he returned to the non-striker's end for the final two balls of the innings and then remarkably came onto field midway through the Zimbabwe innings when Australia were floundering.

He even bowled the 47th over with Zimbabwe needing 11 to win.

A fired-up and focused Clarke was dissatisfied with his team's intensity in the field after 18 overs and came from the dressing rooms barking instructions and pointing figures.

Clarke's presence had an almost immediate impact, with Zimbabwe slipping from a stronghold at 2-100 to the wobbles at 5-106.

But Australia's decision not to pick a second recognised spinner for the tour has been shown up to be a mistake - with nothing in the Harare deck for the bevy of seam bowlers.

Selectors also erred in leaving Test batsman and capable part-timer Steve Smith out of the XI on Sunday, with Glenn Maxwell and Aaron Finch going for plenty.

Mitchell Johnson's vicious pace could also have been handy, but he was rested.

Finch's left-arm offspin was blasted for 16 runs in the 17th over with Brendan Taylor (32) leading the way in the chase.

Australia must beat South Africa in their final pool match on Tuesday, or rely on Zimbabwe not sneaking a bonus point win over the Proteas on Thursday to ensure their place in the final.

Aaron Finch (11), Phil Hughes (10), George Bailey (1), Glenn Maxwell (13) and Mitchell Marsh (15) all departed cheaply to make it 5-97 after 29 overs.

Australia

A. Finch b Nyumbu 11

P. Hughes c Nyumbu b Utseya 10

M. Clarke not out 68

G. Bailey b Williams 1

G. Maxwell b Waller 13

M. Marsh c Utseya b Tiripano 15

B. Haddin c Waller b Tiripano 49

J. Faulkner c Nyumbu b Utseya 0

M. Starc b Williams 3

B. Cutting run out 26

N. Lyon not out 8

Sundries (2lb, 3w) 5

Total (9 wkts, 50 overs) 209

Fall of wickets: 1-11 (Finch), 2-38 (Hughes), 3-39 (Bailey), 4-57 (Maxwell), 5-97 (Marsh), 5-147 (Clarke, retired not out), 6-147 (Faulkner), 7-150 (Starc), 8-201 (Cutting), 9-202 (Haddin).

Bowling: Chatara 8-0-56-0, Nyumbu 10-1-30-1, Utseya 10-0-45-2, Tiripano 6-1-34-2, Williams 10-2-21-2, Waller 6-0-21-1.

Zimbabwe

T. Mawoyo b Lyon 15

Sikandar Raza c sub (Smith) b Lyon 22

H. Masakadza b Starc 18

B. Taylor b Lyon 32

M. Waller c & b Maxwell 11

S. Williams c Clarke b Lyon 4

E. Chigumbura not out 52

D. Tiripano b Starc 3

P. Utseya not out 30

Sundries (2b, 3lb, 18w, 1nb) 24

Total (7 wkts, 48 overs) 211

Fall of wickets: 1-42 (Sikandar Raza), 2-44 (Mawoyo), 3-100 (Masakadza), 4-102 (Taylor), 5-106 (Williams), 6-142 (Waller), 7-156 (Tiripano).

Bowling: Starc 10-3-41-2, Marsh 4-2-13-0, Cutting 6-0-18-0, Faulkner 7-0-28-0, Lyon 10-1-44-4, Finch 2-0-19-0, Maxwell 8-0-41-1, Clarke 1-0-2-0.

Result: Zimbabwe won by 3 wickets.

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News Network
June 13,2020

New Delhi, Jun 13: West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo has said that wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni is the biggest superstar in cricket and is one of the easiest guys to interact with.

Bravo was doing an Instagram live chat with former Zimbabwe pacer Pommie Mbangwa and it was then that the all-rounder was asked to talk about his stint with Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

"I think a lot of credit for CSK's success has to be given to Dhoni and Fleming, obviously the owners, they trust both Fleming and Dhoni, so there is no outside interference when it comes to decision making, both are very big students of the game, players love MS and it's an environment and franchise that allows you to be you," Bravo told Mbangwa during the chat.

"MS Dhoni is the biggest superstar in cricket and in our team. He was one of the easiest people to interact with, outside of the cricket field, he is like playing video games, his door is open at all times, whenever you talk about the biggest superstar and then you think a person like Dhoni is the most humble of them all. CSK is a special team and we have the most loyal fans," he added.

Bravo has been with the CSK since 2011. He has played a total of 104 matches for the franchise, picking up 121 wickets.

The all-rounder has also managed to win the Purple Cap (most wickets in IPL) two times (2013 and 2015).

CSK has won the IPL thrice (2010, 2011 and 2018) and all the titles have come under the leadership of MS Dhoni.

Thirty-eight-year-old Dhoni has been currently enjoying some time away from the game. He last played competitive cricket during the 2019 World Cup.

Dhoni had to face criticism for his slow batting approach during India's matches in the high-profile game.

This year, Dhoni did not find a place for himself in the BCCI's centrally contracted players list.

The board had released the list of central contract list of players for the period from October 2019 to September 2020.

Dhoni is the only captain to win all major ICC trophies (50-over World Cup, T20 World Cup, and Champions Trophy).

Under his leadership, India also managed to attain the number one ranking in Test cricket.

He would have been leading the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) if the Indian Premier League (IPL) had commenced from March 29.

However, the tournament has been postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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News Network
April 21,2020

New Delhi, Apr 21: India skipper Virat Kohli on Tuesday said people seem to have become more compassionate while coping with the COVID-19 pandemic and hoped the sense of gratitude towards frontline workers like doctors and police personnel remains even after the crisis is over.

Speaking in an online class organised by "Unacademy", Kohli and his actor wife Anushka Sharma spoke at length about the challenges they faced before tasting success.

"The one positive out of this crisis that we as a society have become more compassionate. We are showing more gratitude to the frontline workers in this war, be it police personnel, doctors or nurses.

"I hope it stays this way even after we overcome this crisis," said Kohli with Sharma seated next to her.

Kohli said the pandemic has taught the world a very important lesson.

"Life is unpredictable. So, do what makes you happy and not get into comparisons all the time. People have a choice now how to come out of this phase. Life is going to be different after this," said the skipper.

For Sharma, the pandemic has forced people to care about the basics in life.

"There is a learning in all of this. Nothing happens without a reason. If the frontline workers were not there, we would not have access to basics," she said..

"This has taught us that no one is special than the other. Health is everything. We are more connected as a society now," she added.

During the session, Kohli was asked about the moment when he felt most helpless.

"I felt nothing was working for me when I was not picked for the state team initially. I cried the whole night and asked my coach 'why did I not get selected'?" he responded.

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News Network
February 11,2020

Mt. Maunganui (New Zealand), Feb 11: KL Rahul struck a combative 112 but New Zealand completed a 3-0 whitewash of India by winning the third ODI by five wickets, here on Tuesday.

Rahul helped India recover from a shaky start to post a challenging 296 for 7 but the Kiwis overhauled the target with 17 balls to spare.

This is the first whitewash that India has suffered in an ODI series in more than a decade.

Sent in to bat, India were down 62 for 3 in the 13th over after the dismissals of Mayank Agarwal (1), captain Virat Kohli (9) and Prithvi Shaw (40) but Rahul got a useful ally in in-form Shreyas Iyer (62) to take India to a competitive total.

Rahul, who hit nine fours and two sixes during his 113-ball innings, and Iyer stitched exactly 100 runs from 18.2 overs for the fourth wicket to revive the Indian innings.

After the end of the promising innings of Iyer, Rahul shared another 107 runs for the fifth wicket with Manish Pandey (42).

The Kiwis were off to a confident start in their chase with Martin Guptill (66) and Henry Nicholls (80) and putting on a 106-run stand. However, wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal took three wickets to bring India back in the game.

Colin de Grandhomme (58) and Tom Latham (32), though, took their side past the finish line with an unbeaten 80-run partnership.

Brief Scores:

India: 296 for 7 in 50 overs (KL Rahul 112, Shreyas Iyer 62; Hamish Bennett 4/64).

New Zealand: 300 for 5 in 47.1 overs. (H Nicholls 80, M Guptill 66; Y Chahal 3/47).

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