Zimbabwe News (17 Dec 1997)

9 Dec 1997

Zimbabwe News

from The Herald

UNIVERSALS, OH TAKE OVER CRICKET TABLE LEAD

Universals and Old Hararians have taken over at the top of the Dunlop National First League cricket table from Harare Sports Club I following victories in the penultimate round of matches in Harare on Sunday.

Universals, who were in second place before the weekend matches, beat hosts Old Georgians by two wickets with three balls to spare, while Old Boys were more comfortable seven-wicket winners in Mutare against Manicaland.

Meanwhile, at Alexandra, Harare Sports Club I lost the leadership when they went down by six wickets with four balls to spare against defending champions Alexandra.

Universals and Old Boys now have 13.5 points from six matches, followed by Alexandra on 12 and Sports Club I on nine. The title hinges on the outcome of the final round of matches on December 20 when Old Boys take on Sports Club I at Old Hararians and Alexandra host Universals.

The highest-scoring game was at Alexandra, where 534 runs were recorded. Sports Club I gathered 265-1 after a 253-run opening stand between Stuart Carlisle and Craig Wishart. Carlisle hit an unbeaten 151 with 11 fours and four sixes, and Wishart 87 with seven fours and a six.

But their exploits were in vain as Alexandra got to their target off 49.2 overs, thanks to three half-centuries by Trevor Stoole, Murray Goodwin and Tim Bartlett, the first two putting on 100 for the second wicket.

At Groombridge, visitors Universals were set 207 to win and got there on the back of a 99-run third-wicket stand between captain Ali Shah and Alistair Campbell. Shah, in fine form with the bat this season, hit nine fours in his 84, while Campbell finished unbeaten on 73 which included five fours and a six.

Another player who can do little wrong with the bat is Trevor Penney, who hammered nine boundaries in his 92 not out and shared a match-winning fourth-wicket partnership of 153 with Paul Strang, who was unbeaten on 56 with six fours.

The duo helped Old Boys reach 255-3 in the 45th over after Manicaland had made 251-5. Mark Burmester top-scored with 80 for the home team.

There was a mid-afternoon finish at Harare Sports Club, where visitors Old Miltonians gave themselves an early plane-ride home after bowling out the second-string Sports Club side for just 94 in 38 overs, and then knocking off the runs in a mere 18 overs.

Spinners Adam Huckle and Andrew Whittall took 3-19 and 2-18 respectively, with one apiece for Henry Olonga, John Rennie and Heath Streak. As Old Miltonians turned the screws against Sports Club, for whom only three batsmen got into double figures and the highest individual score of 32 came by way of extras.

Zimbabwe Under-19s beat their Eastern Transvaal counterparts by six wickets in the three-day match which finished on Saturday at St George's College.

The Zimbabwe Board XI teams for the three-day United Cricket Board of South Africa Bowl game against Namibia at Harare Sports Club starting on Thursday, and the one-day game on Sunday, were chosen yesterday.

SCORES

OLD GEORGIANS v UNIVERSALS Old Georgians 206-7 (G W Flower 49, A Neethling 40, C N Evans 52; A H Shah 2-36). Universals 207-8 (A H Shah 84, A D R Campbell 73*; C N Evans 3-41, D Joshi 3-29). Universals won by two wickets.

MANICALAND v OLD HARARIANS Manicaland 251-5 (M G Burmester 80, S Lawson 34*, D Yatras 30, J P Brent 25*, R Barbour 25, B I Robinson 23; P A Strang 2-30). Old Hararians won by seven wickets.

ALEXANDRA v HARARE SPORTS CLUB I Harare Sports Club I 265-1 (S V Carlisle 151, C B Wishart 87). Alexandra 269-4 (T W L Stoole 64, T G Bartlett 54*, M W Goodwin 52, D G Goodwin 40, G J Rennie 21; A P Hoffman 3-48). Alexandra won by six wickets.

HARARE SPORTS CLUB B v OLD MILTONIANS Harare Sports Club II 94 (A G Huckle 3-19, A R Whittall 2-18). Old Miltonians 95-2 (A R Whittall 32, G J Whittall 30*). Old Miltonians won by eight wickets.

ZIMBABWE UNDER-19 v EASTERN TRANSVAAL UNDER-19 Eastern Transvaal 255 (A Barnard 90, C Jantjes 60; M A Vermeulen 3-41, D T Mutendera 2-41, G Barrett 2-49) and 135 (C Long 35, Jantjes 21; M Nkala 3-18, Barrett 4-21). Zimbabwe 246 (Nkala 79*, L S Malloch-Brown 62, Barrett 32; Barnard 5-69, T Lange 2-34, B de Goede 2-54) and 147-4 (D Ebrahim 34, J L Oosthuizen 31*, Nkala 33*; Barnard 2-22). Zimbabwe Under-19 won by six wickets.

TEAMS

Zimbabwe Board XI (for three-day game against Namibia at Harare Sports Club starting on Thursday):

T L Penney (captain), D J R Campbell (vice-captain), D P Viljoen, T R Gripper, S V Carlisle, C B Wishart, G C Martin, D Peacock, R W Price, E Matambanadzo, H K Olonga. 12th Man - M Mbangwa.

Zimbabwe Board XI (for one-day game against Namibia at Harare Sports Club on December 14): Penney (captain), Campbell (vice-captain), Viljoen, T G Bartlett, G K Bruk-Jackson, Wishart, Martin, Peacock, Mbangwa, Olonga, C N Evans. 12th Man - Price. Manager - M A (`Babu') Meman.