
Sikandar Raza won man of the match for his 87 from 40 balls
A decision to send Zimbabwe in to bat first proved to be costly for Singapore as the hosts put on a mammoth total in the first game of the Qualifier B.
Regis Chakabva and Craig Ervine helped Zimbabwe off to a great start with the fifty partnership coming in the fourth over.
Singapore fought back by dismissing Chakabva and Ervine soon after and Wesley Madhevere returned back early for 2.
However, the visitors failed to apply pressure and the experienced duo of Sean Williams and Sikandar Raza regrouped and unleashed a volley of sixes. Their century stand powered Zimbabwe to a massive 236/5.
In reply, Singapore struggled to get going, losing their first wicket in the second over. Tendai Chatara then removed Surendran Chandramohan and Aman Desai in the space of four deliveries to leave them stuttering at 32/3.
There were a couple of brief partnerships but with a big target to scale, the pressure kept mounting on Singapore. The required run-rate had gone well past 30 in last few overs and all the Zimbabwe bowlers had to ensure that they kept the run flow in check.
In the end, Zimbabwe restricted Singapore to 125/7, securing a big 111-run win.
Match 2: Jersey v USA;
USA won by eight wickets
Toss: USA opted to bowl
Jersey’s start was a slow one with the USA bowlers controlling the scoring rate in the initial overs. Three wickets fell in the first 10 overs with the score of just 47.
No.3 batter Asa Tribe was the lone warrior for Jersey and his fiery knock powered them to a respectable total.
Taking advantage of the bad balls, Tribe dispatched as many as seven boundaries over the rope and brought up a brilliant half-century.
He remained not out on 73 off 45 as Jersey posted 154/5 in their 20 overs. Juan Theron and Nisarg Patel took two wickets apiece for USA.
For the most part, USA’s chase was a pretty straightforward affair. A modest target of 155 was no match for their batting firepower.
Despite losing their captain Monank Patel in the seventh over, the pair of Steven Taylor and Aaron Jones put up an 88-run second-wicket stand.
Taylor was the aggressor in the partnership as Jones dropped the anchor at the other end. When the second wicket finally fell in the 17th over, USA were just 25 runs away from victory.
Taylor scored an unbeaten 101 as they registered an eight-wicket win with 11 balls to spare.