ICC T20 World Cup: Zimbabwe overcome Scotland, reach Super 12
Zimbabwe clinched a nail-biting five-wicket win over Scotland to garner a Super 12 berth in the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup on Friday. Craig Ervine (58) and Sikandar Raza (40) starred in the 133-run chase (133/5). Earlier, George Munsey's fighting fifty helped Scotland rack up 132/6. Meanwhile, pacer Tendai Chatara (2/14) was the best bet among Zimbabwean bowlers. Here's more.
How did the match pan out?
Opting to bat, Scotland lost Michael Jones in the first over itself before facing setbacks at regular intervals. Munsey's knock was a huge plus and alongside Calum MacLeod's 25 guided Scotland past 130. In exchange, the chase wasn't smooth for Zimbabwe, who lost Regis Chakabva and Wesley Madhevere within two overs. However, a pivotal 64-run stand between Ervine and Raza got them through.
An eventful day for Zimbabwean bowlers
Zimbabwe couldn't have asked for a better display with the ball. They kept their rivals under the pump throughout. As per ESPNcricinfo, Chatara (2/14) has raced to 51 scalps at 22.31, equalling the wickets tally of Ravindra Jadeja, Graeme Swann, Lungi Ngidi, and Jason Holder. Ngarava (2/28) has now claimed 26 wickets, averaging 28.80. Meanwhile, Blessing Muzarabani and Raza picked a wicket each.
Munsey stands tall
Munsey produced one of his clutch knocks in the T20 WC, scoring a 51-ball 54 while the wickets tumbled at the other end. The Scottish Run Machine struck seven fours before flicking Richard Ngarava toward Milton Shumba positioned at deep-square leg. It was his ninth T20I fifty and second at the T20 WC. He now owns 1,438 runs, striking at 141.53.
Seventh win in T20 World Cup
Zimbabwe now own a 7-8 win-loss record in the tournament. Notably, they downed Australia by five wickets in their maiden game at the 2007 WC. Zimbabwe then lost six consecutive matches before mustering wins over the Netherlands and UAE in 2014. In 2016, they beat Hong Kong and Scotland before losing to Afghanistan. Zimbabwe failed to qualify for 2021 T20 WC in UAE.
Raza, Ervine clock these numbers
Raza's 23-ball 40 was laced with three fours and two sixes. He now has 1,176 T20I runs. Notably, he has belted 652 runs at 40.75 in 2022, besides taking 20 wickets. Meanwhile, Ervine notched his sixth T20I fifty (54-ball 58), hitting six fours. He holds 1,087 runs across 51 matches at 23.12.
Zimbawbe finish atop Group B, advance to Super 12 stage
Zimbabwe bested Ireland by 31 runs before losing to West Indies by an identical margin in the group stage. They prevailed against Scotland to wind up atop the Group B points table (Net Run Rate of +0.200). Zimbabwe, who have now advanced to the Super 12 Group 2 stage, will be squaring off against India, Pakistan, Netherlands (Group A), Bangladesh, and South Africa.
