By Trevor Makonyonga
Zimbabwe 166 for 6 (Madhevere 73, Burl 34*, Shoriful 3-33) beat Bangladesh 143 (Shamim 29, Masakadza 3-20, Jongwe 3-31) by 23 runs.
Zimbabwe registered the first win of the Bangladesh tour with a T20I series level after a superb 23-run win in Harare.
It was Wessley Madhevere’s career-best 73 and a quick fire 34 off 19 balls Ryan Burl knock that set Zimbabwe up for the victory.
Dion Myers had a 26 off 21 deliveries cameo which was key to show off his potential once again as he settled the Zimbabwe innings with a 57 run partnership with Madhevere.
In form Regis Chakabva (14) was the only other batsman to hit double figures.
It is Tadiwanashe Marumani’s star that is yet to shine although full potential has been realised in his first class career.
It was a swop of performances as Bangladesh lost too many wickets to which their captain, Mahmudullah, acknowledged that they were not a batting unit.
In a post match interview with ESPN Cricinfo, Mahmudullah, said, “We were focused for this game and wanted to do well. We probably lost the game because we couldn’t execute our plans. We haven’t become a bad side after this defeat. They played well. We didn’t take the chances in the field. We have to avoid making these mistakes in the next game. Unfortunately, we didn’t click as a batting group. There weren’t any partnerships up front, particularly chasing 160-plus.”
Wellington Masakadza had a fantastic match, taking three wickets and three catches, dismantling the Tigers attack.
Luke Jongwe was also great with the ball taking 3-31 taking Bangladesh’s last hope to saving the match in debutant Shamim Hossain who hit 29 of 13 balls before Masakadza caught him.
Tendai Chatara and Blessing Muzarabani took two wickets each in this dominant showcase by the Chevron.
There was an unusual event that occurred in the match when a bail fell when Mohammad Saifuddin was batting and replays showed that the bail had fallen on its own and the middle stump had also been shaken backwards without any impact from the batsman.
Zimbabwe will face off against Bangladesh in the last game of the tour on Sunday, July 25.