Zimbabwe v India

Match report, by John Ward
26 September 1998

Zimbabwe 213; India 217/2. India won by eight wickets.

Zimbabwe are usually highly competitive at home. But this happened to be one of their most disappointing days, as they played well short of their best in every department of the game and were soundly beaten.

They were put in to bat by India, who won the toss. The weather was warm and the sky cloudless during the morning, a typical Zimbabwean September day. To the advantage of the bowling side was a significant breeze from the south-east and a pitch with a little more green in it than is usually the case in Bulawayo. This enabled the bowlers to get a degree of movement both in the air and off the pitch.

Zimbabwe were handicapped by the absences of Grant Flower and Guy Whittall through injury. Trevor Madondo, making his debut in one-day internationals, opened with Alistair Campbell, and they added 20 together before Madondo was caught at slip off Agarkar. Murray Goodwin did not last long, adjudged lbw in what looked a fifty-fifty decision. If the Zimbabweans felt aggrieved the Indians also had reason to do so a few minutes later, when Andy Flower was caught at the wicket off a thin edge before scoring but was adjudged not out.

Campbell and Flower began to wrest the initiative from the tourists, with Campbell looking particularly impressive. Immediately after losing Madondo, he hit Srinath for three successive leg-side boundaries and looked in great form as he passed 50 for the 13th time in one-day internationals. But then, as so often with this player, came a crucial lapse of concentration as he lifted a catch straight to short extra cover, as it transpired, this was the turning point of the match.

Flower followed immediately, to a ball from Harbinder Singh that spun sharply enough to catch the shoulder of his bat; the ball lobbed towards the vacant point position but Robin Singh ran round to take a fine catch before it touched the ground. Craig Wishart did his hopes of a permanent place no good whatever by leaping down the pitch to be stumped, and at 105 for five the innings had been turned on its head.

Craig Evans and Heath Streak played sensible cricket to share a valuable partnership of 52 but, just as they should have been cashing in, there came one of those foolish run-outs for which Zimbabwe are becoming famous. Streak set off from the non-striker’s end for a hit directly to backward point and was unable to regain his ground. Immediately afterwards Evans undid much of his good work by attempting a six over midwicket but instead hitting a catch directly to the deep fielder there.

However, Zimbabwe do bat down to number ten. Andrew Whittall, so often underestimated with the bat, joined Paul Strang and the pair shared a 53-run stand for the ninth wicket which ended only in the final over. But 213 was hardly a score likely to challenge the powerful Indian batting line-up, barring unusual circumstances.

To drop Tendulkar once could be called a misfortune, but to drop him twice, as Zimbabwe did, is fatal. The little master had only five runs to his credit when he drove Pommy Mbangwa perhaps without due care and attention, and Evans dropped what should have been a relatively simple overhead catch at mid-on, off the luckless Mbangwa, who had trouble finding his line. On 29, a more difficult chance to Whittall at mid-off also went down. From then on, Tendulkar was immovable and his 18th one-day century, a new record as he passed Desmond Haynes' total of 17, seemed inevitable. He was particularly strong on the leg side, but also played a number of fine drives through extra cover. For most of his innings he was content to place ones and twos almost at will, saving boundaries only for the very loose balls. He did play a couple of other uppish strokes which landed clear of the field, but the only bowler to cause him any concern was Streak in his opening spell, who beat him on a couple of occasions.

His opening partner, Saurav Ganguly, played a couple of good strokes before flashing at Streak outside the off stump, for Flower to take a good low catch well to his left. Rahul Dravid has been criticised for his tardiness in one-day cricket and he certainly took his time to reach double figures. He batted throughout in the shadow of Tendulkar, and went almost unnoticed in their partnership of 180. India were on the verge of victory when he lofted a catch directly at extra cover, reducing Zimbabwe's margin of defeat slightly.

Zimbabwe certainly did not make the best use of their resources today, and no doubt coach Dave Houghton has made that clear to them. They may well prove a different side tomorrow. They deserve perhaps four marks out of ten for today's performance, one of their weakest at home and a far cry from their fine seven-wicket victory over the same opposition eighteen months ago.

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