Zimbabwe vs West Indies, 13th Match, Group A at Harare, CWC Qualifier, Jun 24 2023 - Ball by Ball Commentary

5:15pm Phew, what an emotional rollercoaster that was - not just for the players but for everyone watching, at home and at the venue. In the end, Zimbabwe held their nerve. West Indies did not. This will also have ramifications moving forward, with Zimbabwe now guaranteed to enter the Super Six phase with four points, having already defeated Netherlands and West Indies (the two other teams that have qualified from this group).

All those calculations, though, are better left for another day. Today is all about lauding Zimbabwe and enjoying how they seemingly pulled a victory out of the fire. It was a pleasure bringing this game to you, and we hope you enjoyed our coverage as much as we loved bringing it to you. Until next time, this is me (Shashwat) signing off on behalf of Madushka, M Venkat Raghav and everyone else at ESPNcricinfo. Goodbye and take care!

Craig Ervine, Zimbabwe captain: (Fitness concern) Looks like I have picked up a little calf strain and did not want to aggravate it. (On how tough it was to not be on the field) I would rather be out in the middle than sitting in the balcony and watching the boys play. Sean Williams is a very experienced campaigner and it looked like he had everything under control all the way through. Losing the toss and having to bat first, those 10-15 overs was quite tricky to navigate. The wicket was a little two-paced to begin with. We did well to not lose early wicket and that gave us a bit of breathing space (towards the end and in the middle overs). Raza and Burl batted brilliantly for their 100-run stand. We did feel that we were maybe 20-30 short of what would probably be a winning score. It is always going to be tough (mentally). We have talked about treating every game and opposition the same. Today has been quite an emotional day for everybody and it is not a long time before we have to come back and play again on Monday. (On the crowd) Thank you to all the supporters who came out and supported us. The crowd was absolutely phenomenal and hopefully we can see such a crowd again.

Shai Hope, West Indies captain: Too much is on my mind right now, not sure if I can explain it. Lot of hurting and very disappointed but the tournament is not over yet. The aim is to play our best cricket, regardless of whoever we play. We let ourselves down int eh field and that cost us. If we were asked to chase (that score) before the game, we would have taken it. There will be challenges, both on and off the field. We have to make sure we harden ourselves and understand what we have to do moving forward. (Wish-list moving forward) I think it is best for us to have a day off to get all of this out of our systems and come back on Monday. We know we have our work cut out. (On what went wrong) Catches, plain and simple. We always ask our bowlers to create chances and they did. And then, (we made mistakes) with the bat.

Sowmya : "Goosebumps !!! The Harare crowd won the match as much as their heroes did!!! Home Support does fire the team up !!!"

Sikandar Raza, Player of the Match: All I asked from the boys was fight and courage out there. As long as we are doing that, the skills will look after themselves - we are not far away from the best in the world. Our bolwing has been amazing. (On the score) I personally thought we were 20-30 runs short. But the hunger we have, to win this game and to get to India, that took care of the runs we were short of. We always believed in them (our bowlers). We never doubted them and no better place to stand up. They are the ones who really won us that match. (On the crowd support) I don't think so we could have won with our skills only. The crowd played a big part and we are going to do a lap of honour now.

4:54pm Oh my word, it will take quite a bit for that to sink in. Just imagine the range of emotions those at the venue must be going through. This was the West Indies' game to win. They had restricted Zimbabwe to a very chaseable total and then looked in fine fettle with Hope and Pooran at the crease. But once their captain Hope departed, their hopes seemed to evaporate too. Pooran was trapped lbw and none of their lower order could stand up. Chase tried to hold things together but he simply ran out of partners, before dragging on a short delivery off Chatara.

As much as this was a game the West Indies lost, take nothing away from Zimbabwe. They ensured they got up to a defendable total (don't forget the last-wicket partnership that ultimately got them up to 268). Then, with the ball, they fought back superbly in the second half of the powerplay. They kept the pressure on, even as Mayers and Pooran threatened to break the shackles and when push came to shove, their bowlers kept attacking the stumps and forced the West Indian batters into mistakes.

Chatara to bowl out

Prashant Saxena: "This Zimbabwe team has gelled up quite good. I think they can produce a few upsets in the world cup" -- Agree with the first point definitely. But there is still a lot of cricket to be played between now and the World Cup, including this game, which is not over yet...

Uwaisul Karnain: "Believe m e or not, Alzarrie Joseph averages 70.00 at no. 11 in ODIs" -- WI would not mind if that nudges close to 100 by the end of this game....

Raza to continue

Joseph is the last batter in. The crowd, in chorus, is asking for just one more wicket...

pramod: "great captaincy - every time he changed bowler got rewarded"

The atmosphere at the ground is just incredible. The crowd might even be sensing a victory now. But to be fair to them, they have been behind Zimbabwe all day long, and the hosts seem to have fed off that energy so far, especially in clutch moments...

Hosein in at 10