Zimbabwe give fans hope with tour match win

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Zimbabwe give fans hope with tour match win

PERTH: Zimbabwe gave its supporters hope in the upcoming one-day tri-nation series with an eight-run win over an Australia A side at the Western Australian Cricket Association Ground here Thursday. An unbeaten century by opener Stuart Carlisle and a solid bowling performance by Sean Ervine paved the way for the tour-opening win in a day-night match played in fine conditions.

Carlisle smashed 100 from 128 deliveries including nine fours and one six to steer his team to an all-out total of 240 at just one ball short of the allocated 50 overs. While Ervine led the bowling for the visitors, he was well supported by Douglas Hondo, Andy Blignaut and Ray Price who snared two wickets apiece. Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to bat but suffered an early loss with opener Vusi Sibanda caught by Brad Haddin off the bowling of Mark Cleary for just three with the score on 10.

Carlisle and Mark Vermeulen then added a further 58 runs to the tally before the latter was run out for 37 off just 26 deliveries. Grant Flower suffered a similar fate after scoring 26 runs, sparking a middle order collapse which saw the next three wickets, including that of captain Heath Streak who scored just two, falling for 13 runs.

For the Australians, a team of promising under-25 players, the tail-end pairing of Adam Griffith and Shaun Tait offered late resistance, taking the home side to within sight of victory with scores of 33 and 22-not out respectively in a 53-run last-wicket partnership. Shaun Marsh, with 57 runs from 58 balls was top scorer for Australia A with Dominic Thornely taking 3-38 from 9.5 overs.

World champion Australia, Zimbabwe and India will all meet in a one-day international series to be played around Australia through January and early February.

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scorecard

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good start by Zimbabwe - it had to happened to be honest because i have seen the recent games of them against West Indies - and i tell you Zimbabwe side has been in good form lately

Stuart Carlisle has filled the gap of batting after the departure of Andy Flower - bowling wise i would say they(Zimbabwe) are okay and average side - today they are playing against Western Australia - let's see how it unfolds

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Wishart waits on scan

Wishart was hurt in a warm-up match against Western Australia

Zimbabwe batsman Craig Wishart will have a scan on Tuesday to determine the extent of his knee injury.
Wishart twisted his left knee while batting against Western Australia and was unable to resume his innings after retiring on 13 in the one-day game.

“At the moment the knee is swollen and sore and Craig has trouble putting weight on the joint,” said Zimbabwe physiotherapist Brad Robinson.

The triangular series between India, Zimbabwe and Australia starts Friday.

Wishart underwent surgery on the same knee five years ago.

“At this stage we cannot detemine if this is a related injury or something entirely different,” Robinson added.

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Western Australia v Zimbabweans
4 January 2004 (50-over match)

Result: Western Australia won by 70 runs

Toss: Western Australia
Man of the Match: SM Ervine

scorecard

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oh well nevermind - Zimbabweans win one and lose one - hopefully Criag Wishart will recover before VB series.

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Australia A crush Zimbabwe in one-dayer by 119 runs](http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/040107/323/eiiwv.html)

ADELAIDE, Australia (AFP) - Opener Marcus North set up a record total for Australia A to lead them to a crushing 119-run victory over Zimbabwe in their day-night limited overs match at the Adelaide Oval.

Chasing 327 for six, Australia A’s highest ever score in a limited overs match, Zimbabwe were all out for 208 in the 44th over on Wednesday, a morale-sapping loss in the last match before taking on Australia and India in the limited overs tri-nation series.

Adding to Zimbabwe’s woes, batsman Stuart Carlisle suffered a thumb injury while fielding and did not bat – Craig Wishart had already been ruled out of at least the first match of the tri-series with a knee injury.

Australia A’s total passed its previous best of 321 for four, also against Zimbabwe, at the Gabba in Brisbane in January 2001.

North was the star, smashing 115 from 108 balls, including 14 fours and two sixes, one of them an enormous hit off paceman Douglas Hondo soon after bringing up his century, which went about 20 metres over the midwicket fence.

Skipper Michael Clarke also batted superbly, making the most of a missed stumping chance by wicketkeeper Tatenda Taibu when he was on six to belt 93 from 71 balls.

Zimbabwe never looked likely to reel in the massive target.

Openers Vusi Sibanda (23 from 27 balls) and Mark Vermeulen (22 from 34 balls) made a promising start to their formidable run-chase with a stand of 51 in 56 balls.

But paceman Mark Cleary broke their partnership with a sharp caught and bowled to dismiss Vermeulen in his first over, the ninth of the innings, then had Sibanda caught behind in his next over.

Grant Flower (67 from 87 balls) and Sean Ervine (51 from 74 balls) batted well to steady the innings with a 122-run fourth-wicket stand.

But by the time their partnership ended, when Ervine was run out by Dominic Thornely in the 37th over, Zimbabwe needed to score at an unachievable rate of more than 11 runs per over, and the remaining batsmen tumbled quickly.

Brief scores:

Australia A 327 for 6 off 50 overs (M North 115, M. Clarke 93; H. Streak 2-55, D. Hondo 2-65).

Zimbabwe 208 off 44 overs (G. Flower 67, S. Ervine 51; M. Clarke 2-16, M. Cleary 2-21, C. White 2-28).