Zimbabwe won by 4 wickets (with 52 balls remaining) – 1st ODI: Zimbabwe v Bangladesh, in Harare

Brian Vitori and Vusi Sibanda starring for Zimbabwe, Vitori ran through Bangladesh with a four-wicket burst at the start, and Sibanda was all dancing feet and flashing blade against the left-arm spinners despite the early loss of Taylor. They could have so easily got bogged down, but he saw them through despite a stirring display of swing with the oldish ball from Rubel.

12th August 2011 – Hours of play (local time): 09.30 start (07:30 GMT / 08:30 BST) , First Session 09.30-13.00, Interval 13.00-13.45, Second Session 13.45-17.15

Latest:
Game Over: Zimbabwe won by 4 wickets (with 52 balls remaining)

Drinks: Zimbabwe - 107/1 in 21.0 overs (V Sibanda 53, H Masakadza 38)

Innings Break: Bangladesh - 184/10 in 48.4 overs (Suhrawadi Shuvo 20)
Drinks: Bangladesh - 119/5 in 34.0 overs (Shakib Al Hasan 41, Mushfiqur Rahim 37)
Drinks: Bangladesh - 39/4 in 15.0 overs (Shakib Al Hasan 0, Mahmudullah 4)
Zimbabwe won the toss and decided to bowl first

Brendan Taylor: "Our top order seem to have worked out a better gameplan during chasing. During the Test we saw that the ball did something in the first session."

Kyle Jarvis and Tino Mawoyo miss out from the Zimbabwe XI that played the Test. Prosper Utseya and Forster Mutizwa come in

Kepler Wessels says there is less grass on the surface compared to the pitch on which the Test was played. There is some early morning moisture but that should evaporate soon and bat first is the way to go, he says.

After the excellent victory on their Test return, Zimbabwe now take on Bangladesh in a One Day International (ODI) series - this is a format that is more familiar to both teams. Whilst the Test match was only settled on the final day, Zim were on top for most of the game, but they may not get it all their own way in the ODI's as these two fairly evenly-matched sides face off over five games to be played in Harare and Bulawayo.

Team News
Unlike in the test, Brendan Taylor will opening the batting along with Hamilton Masakadza. After his great performance in the only test against Bangladesh, Brian Vitori is in line for his first ODI cap. Prosper Utseya will also play adding another spinner to the team and Forster Mutizwa, who was rather unlucky to miss out on the Test match after his performance in the warm-up, is likely to slot into the middle order.

It's the batting department where Zimbabwe are likely to look a touch light, but a return to form with the willow by Elton Chigumbura would go some way to solving that. His bowling performance in the Test should give him confidence.

Waller seems the best equipped to fill the second all-rounder's berth which would give the hosts plenty of batting and bowling, but as an offspinner might not be suited to a pace-heavy game plan so may not be included. Keegan Meth could may also get the nod as he is a slightly better batsman than Kyle Jarvis, but expect that place to rotate (Mutizwa must also be in the running) and possibly be a thorn in Zimbabwe's side as they search for the right balance.

Zimbabwe Team: (probable):
1 Brendan Taylor (capt), 2 Hamilton Masakadza, 3 Vusi Sibanda, 4 Craig Ervine, 5 Tatenda Taibu (wk), 6 Forster Mutizwa, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Prosper Utseya, 9 Ray Price, 10 Brian Vitori, 11 Chris Mpofu.

Bangladesh Team (probable):
1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Junaid Siddique, 4 Shahriar Nafees, 5 Mohammad Ashraful, 6 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 7 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 8 Abdur Razzak, 9 Shafiul Islam, 10 Rubel Hossain, 11 Nasir Hossain

A few Stats

If history is anything to go by, things do not look too good for Zim:

Bangladesh have won the last three series between these two countries - two of them at home in Bangladesh and one in Bulawayo - and have therefore been installed as favourites with the bookmakers, but it remains to be seen how they react to losing a Test for which they were ill-prepared and ill-equipped. There is a belief in the Zimbabwean camp that the subcontinental side do not have much of an appetite for adversity and so the hosts will fancy their chances, no doubt hugely encouraged by Monday's result.

Last Five Head-To-Head Results

• December, 2010: Fifth ODI: Bangladesh won by six wickets
• December, 2010: Fourth ODI: Match abandoned
• December, 2010: Third ODI: Bangladesh won by 65 runs
• December, 2010: Second ODI: Bangladesh won by six wickets
• December, 2010: First ODI: Zimbabwe won by nine runs

• In one day cricket, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh have played against each other 51 times: Zim 23 wins, Bangladesh 28 wins
• In the last 5 years they have played against each other 31 times: Bangladesh 23 wins, Zimbabwe only 8 wins
• Shahriar Nafees's batting average against Zimbabwe is 62.41, almost double his overall average of 33.34. Three of his four hundreds came against them, including his highest score of 123.

Bangladesh's recent dominance over Zimbabwe may suggest that are firm favourites on the eve this series, but the tables have turned a little. Zimbabwe beat them in their comeback Test and will want to maintain their status with a convincing performance in the ODIs. Although Zim's most recent showing in the fifty-over format, at the 2011 World Cup, was disappointing. They registered just one win over minnows Kenya and their five defeats meant that any outside chance they had of making it to the quarter-finals quickly disappeared.

On a more positive note: Ray Price should enjoy the game as his highest score with the bat (46) was against Bangladesh in August 2009 as are his best bowling figures of 4 for 22 also against Bangladesh in January 2009.

Series Fixtures

• First ODI: 12 August, Harare
• Second ODI: 14 August, Harare
• Third ODI: 16 August, Harare
• Fourth ODI: 19 August, Bulawayo
• Fifth ODI: 21 August, Bulawayo

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, "A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides" by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher "Behind the Shades"

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don't have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

Where to Buy Blood, Sweat and Treason

Currently available in Hardcover it is available online through Amazon, in the UK and US

UK
Blood, Sweat and Treason on Amazon.co.uk

USA

Blood, Sweat and Treason on Amazon.com

Chirundu.com and I am sure all Zimbos around the globe would like to wish Zimbabwe the best of luck against Australia today in their opening game of the 2011 cricket world cup.

Zimbabwe vs Australia Live Video Streaming
You can now also watch live video streaming of the game right here on Chirundu.com:

Game Over

Australia 262 for 6 (Watson 79, Clarke 58*, Mpofu 2-58) beat Zimbabwe 171 (Cremer 37, Johnson 4-19, Tait 2-34) by 91 runs

Highlights

History tells us that Australia should win, having lost only once in their inaugural encounter in the 1983 World Cup by 13 runs. There have been a few other instances when Zimbabwe did run Australia close (twice at Perth – 1994 when Australia won by two wickets, and 2001 when they won by one run), but Australia’s firepower have almost always prevailed.

But the Zimbabweans have kept an eye on Australia's performance during the warm-up matches, when they struggled against top-quality spin. Ray Price, Prosper Utseya and Graeme Cremer are not quite the same as Harbhajan Singh, but spin is the strength of Zimbabwe and Australia will need to force the pace for much of their innings.

* Head-to-head record Total played: 27. Australia wins: 25; Zimbabwe wins: 1; NR: 1
* In the sub-continent: 6. Australia wins: 6; Zimbabwe wins: 0 In the World Cups: 8. Australia wins: 7; Zimbabwe wins: 1

Zimbabwe team
BRM Taylor, CK Coventry, T Taibu†, SC Williams, CR Ervine, E Chigumbura*, P Utseya, SW Masakadza, AG Cremer, CB Mpofu, RW Price

Australia team
SR Watson, BJ Haddin†, RT Ponting*, MJ Clarke, CL White, DJ Hussey, SPD Smith, MG Johnson, SW Tait, JJ Krejza, B Lee

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, "A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides" by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher "Behind the Shades"

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don't have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

Where to Buy Blood, Sweat and Treason

Currently available in Hardcover it is available online through Amazon, in the UK and US

UK
Blood, Sweat and Treason on Amazon.co.uk

USA

Blood, Sweat and Treason on Amazon.com

Zimbabwe play India in two Twenty20 games this weekend and even though Zimbabwe recently lost to Sri Lanka in the final of the One day international tri-nation series, they still have many reasons to feel confident. During the group stages they beat India twice and Sri Lanka once, finishing top of the table. In the twenty20 format of the game, they have also had some recent successes, beating Australia and Pakistan in the warm up games to the Twenty20 World cup.

Whilst the two teams have played each other many times recently, this will be the first game between these two sides in the Twenty20 format. So far India have 12 wins and 11 defeats, while Zimbabwe have only played ten Twenty20 games, winning three of them.

FREE – Watch Zimbabwe vs India Live Online

You can watch live streaming of the two Zimbabwe India games live on-line through BetFair

Betfair is an online betting site and all you have to do is open an account with them and you can watch this and many other live sporting events including all of the games in this tri tournament. The best bit of all it is totally FREE – I did it myself and you don’t even have to deposit any money into your account:

To Watch the Games Live:

1. Go to the Betfair Website and create an account
2. Log in to your new account
3. Look for the Zimbabwe game under Sports/Cricket and click the Watch Sport Free on Bet Fair Live Video link on the right, or just look for the Live Video link anywhere on their site.

Updates – If you can’t watch it live, I will be updating this page throughout the day with the scores, just check the Latest Updates at the foot of this page.

Date and Time of the games
Both games take place in Harare, the first match kicks off on Saturday 12th June at 1pm local time (11am GMT), or 12pm British Summer Time. The second game is on Sunday the 13th June at 1pm local time (11am GMT), or 12pm British Summer Time.

Zimbabwe
Zim’s spinners are their strongest card, depriving opposing teams of easy runs, forcing them into mistakes and then taking wickets. In the batting department, keep an eye out for the openers Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor who both go into the game with some great form. Brendan Taylor in particular was almost unstoppable in the tri-series, and will look to cash in with some more runs over the weekend.

Possible Zimbabwe team: 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Brendan Taylor, 3 Tatenda Taibu (wk) 4 Charles Coventry, 5 Andy Blignaut 6 Ervine, 7 Elton Chigumbura (capt), 8 Graeme Cremer, 9 Prosper Utseya, 10 Greg Lamb, 11 Ray Price.

India
India seem to be of the opinion of “If you can’t beat them, join them” and they have four spinners to choose from, in addition to two spinning allrounders, of whom Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha will expect to make the cut. The seamers were pretty much to a man unimpressive in the ODIs, and it could be a toss-up between Umesh Yadav, Ashok Dinda and Pankaj Singh for two spots. Lack of options could force the side to field Dinesh Karthik and Yusuf Pathan, both notable exclusions for the Asia Cup..

Possible Indian Team: 1 M Vijay, 2 Dinesh Karthik/Naman Ojha (wk), 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Rohit Sharma, 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Pragyan Ojha, 10 and 11 Two out of Ashok Dinda, Umesh Yadav and Pankaj Singh.

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Latest Updates:

I will be post updates here throughout the day, as well as on my twitter feed and the Chirundu facebook page.

Game Over: India 112/4 (15.0/20 ov), India won by 6 wickets (with 30 balls remaining). Zimbabwe just didn’t make enough and it was clear from the start. Had they scored 160, this would have been an interesting chase. India looked jittery against Mpofu in the beginning and threatened to make heavy weather of this chase but Pathan eased the nerves with some big hits.

3:14pm Another Wicket, this is starting to get interesting again: India 48/4 (7.4/20 ov). RG Sharma stumped †Tatenda Taibu bowled Ray Price 10 (15b 1×4 0×6) SR: 66.66

3:12pm Wicket: SK Raina caught Chigumbura bowled Ray Price 28 (17b 3×4 1×6) SR: 164.70. India 47/3 (7.2/20 ov). India require another 65 runs with 7 wickets and 12.4 overs remaining.

2:52pm Zim needed early wickets and they now have 2: India 12/2 (2.5/20 ov). India require another 100 runs with 8 wickets and 17.1 overs remaining. Last wicket: NV Ojha caught †Tatenda Taibu bowled Chris Mpofu 2 (9b 0×4 0×6) SR: 22.22

2:44pm Zim off to a good start, Mpofu Strikes: India 7/1 (1.0/20 ov) M Vijay c Utseya b Mpofu 5 (5b 1×4 0×6) SR: 100.00. India require another 105 runs with 9 wickets and 19.0 overs remaining.

1:29pm End of Zim’s innings – was hard to watch the end of that as Zimbabwe played terribly. Lets hope that the bowlers can do better when India come out to bat. Zimbabwe 111/9 (20.0/20 ov).

1:19pm Hard to watch this – Zim playing terribly, now 108/9 (19.4/20 ov)

1:12pm Wicket: Craig Ervine (b Dinda 30). Zimbabwe 103/7 after 18.3 overs

11:44am Ogh no, another two wickets in quick succession, Zimbabwe now 81/6 (13.3/20 ov) – not looking good for Zim. Last two wickets: E Chigumbura c Vijay b PP Ojha 3 (9b 0×4 0×6) and GA Lamb lbw b PP Ojha 0 (1b 0×4 0×6)

11:44am Wicket: Zimbabwe 73/4 (10.3/20 ov) CJ Chibhabha lbw b Chawla 40 (30b 5×4 1×6) SR: 133.33. Zimbabwe Run Rate 6.95

11:44am Zimbabwe* vs India, 57 / 3 in 7.0 overs – RR 8.14, Craig Ervine 3(6b), Chamu Chibhabha 29(20b), Pragyan 2.0-0-8-0.

Zimbabwe Dancing Girls

11:15am Zimbabwe fight back, but also loose another wicket: Brendan Taylor lbw bowled Vinay Kumar 15 (9b 2×4 1×6) SR: 166.66. Zimbabwe 30/2 (3.0/20 ov) Run Rate 10.58

11:02am Ogh no Zimbabwe loose their first wicket very early – Hamilton Masakadza c Raina b Vinay Kumar 1 (3b 0×4 0×6) SR: 33.33 and that brings Chamu Chibhabha into bat. Zimbabwe 2/1 (0.4/20 ov)

11:00am Zimbabwe team news: ED Rainsford and Chamu Chibhabha are in replacing Charles Coventry and Graeme Cremer.

Toss India have won the toss and have decided to bowl first.

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, “A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides” by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher “Behind the Shades”

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don’t have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

The Zimbabwe’s run to the final of this tri-series has been impressive as they have not just been winning their games, but winning them well and do look like a team full of confidence and one that knows how to win. I have been a Zim cricket fan for yonks and rarely, if ever have I seen them chase down targets with such ease and confidence before.

After impressive wins against India and the demolishing of Sri Lanka by eight wickets on Monday, Zimbabwe a now just one game away from their first triumph in a multi-nation tournament involving Test-playing nations and you can watch it live or keep up-to-date with all the important events as they happen on this page:

FREE – Watch Zimbabwe vs Sri Lanka Live

Live streaming of the Zimbabwe Sri Lanka game is available on-line through BetFair of all places!

Betfair is an online betting community and all you have to do is create an account with them and you can watch this and many other live sporting events including all of the games in this tri tournament. The best bit of all it is totally FREE – I did it myself and you don’t even have to deposit any money into your account:

To Watch the Game Live:

1. Go to the Betfair Website and create an account
2. Log in to your new account
3. Look for the Zimbabwe game under Sports/Cricket and click the Watch Sport Free on Bet Fair Live Video link on the right, or just look for the Live Video link anywhere on their site.

Updates – If you can’t watch it live, I will be updating this page throughout the day with the scores, just check the Latest Updates at the foot of this page.

Zimbabwe
So far in this tournament Zimbabwe have only had one bad day and that was against Sri Lanka, hopefully they can keep their nerves together and play as well as they know they can. What is encouraging is they look like a team that are enjoying their cricket: the choreographed dance between Ray Price and Chris Mpofu and Hamilton Masakadza’s ‘just married’ are examples of this.

Zimbabwe will be hoping that their opening pair of Brendan Taylor and Hamilton Masakadza can continue with their fine form and that their “spin army” continue to not only tie down the Sri Lankans, but take wickets. Greg Lamb and Andy Blignaut will probably return to the team after missing the last game.

Squad: Elton Chigumbura (Captain), AM Blignaut, CJ Chibhabha, CK Coventry, AG Cremer, CR Ervine, GA Lamb, H Masakadza, CB Mpofu, RW Price, EC Rainsford, V Sibanda, T Taibu†, BRM Taylor, P Utseya

Sri Lanka
Even though Sri Lanka lost to Zimbabwe on Monday, they are still the best team in the tournament and must go into this game as favourites. Angelo Mathews and Nuwan Kulasekara, an excellent new-ball bowler may return for the final after missing the last game and are sure to strengthen the team.

Squad: TM Dilshan (Captain), AD Mathews, LD Chandimal†, CRD Fernando, S Randiv, CK Kapugedera, KMDN Kulasekara, BAW Mendis, BMAJ Mendis, NLTC Perera, TT Samaraweera, LPC Silva, WU Tharanga, HDRL Thirimanne, T Thushara

Date and Time of the game
The match kicks off on the 7th June at 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT), or 8:00 British Summer Time. In Sri Lanka and India, the match starts at 12:30.
Hours of play (local time): 09.00 start, First Session 09.00-12.30, Interval 12.30-13.15, Second Session 13.15-16.45

Latest Match Updates:

I will be post updates here throughout the day, as well as on my twitter feed and the Chirundu facebook page.

3:26pm (Zim time) That’s it, Sri Lanka Beat Zim by 9 wickets (with 92 balls remaining) – All too easy for them in the end, but well played Zim for reaching the final.

2:55pm (Zim time) Finally a wicket for Zimbabwe, but far too little far to late. WU Tharanga run out 72 (79b 8×4 1×6) SR: 91.13. Sri Lanka 160/1 (25.5 ov) Sri Lanka require another 40 runs with 9 wickets and 24.1 overs remaining

2:00pm (Zim time) Sri Lanka looking good: Sri Lanka 82/0 (13.0 ov) Required Run Rate 3.18

12:10pm (Zim time) Wicket: That’s it Zimbabwe all out for 199. Last wicket: CB Mpofu run out 6 (9b 0×4 0×6) SR: 66.66

12:05pm (Zim time) Wicket: Clean bowled, Graeme Cremer b Fernando 5 (10b 0×4 0×6) SR: 50.00. Zimbabwe 189/8 (45.5 ov) Zimbabwe in danger of not completing their overs.

11:55am (Zim time) Wicket: Charles Coventry looking to be aggressive, went down the track and heaved it straight to long-on. CK Coventry c Tharanga b BMAJ Mendis 18 (12b 3×4 0×6) SR: 150.00. Zimbabwe now 178/7 (43.3 ov)

11:48am (Zim time) Wicket: Greg Lamb is bowled by BMAJ Mendis for 37 (65b 1×4 0×6) SR: 56.92. Zimbabwe 163/6 (41.4 ov) – run rate 3.91

11:42am (Zim time) Wicket: Elton Chigumbura trying to up the pace, looses his wicket.Zimbabwe 155/5 (40.1 ov). Next man in is Charles Coventry

11:27am (Zim time) Wicket, Tatenda Taibu out for 71 and Zimbabwe are now 139/4 after 35 overs. Also slow going for Zim with a run rate of only 3.87. T Taibu c Kapugedera b Fernando 71 (93b 4×4 0×6) SR: 76.34

10:25am (Zim time) Zimbabwe loose their third wicket, Craig Ervine run out. Zimbabwe now 49/3. Greg Lamb is the new batsman.

9:45am (Zim time) Wicket: ogh no, Taylor gone Zimbabwe now 29/2 (9.3 ov). Brendan Taylor caught Samaraweera bowled Fernando 19 (22b 3×4 0×6) SR: 86.36. Craig Ervine is the new batsman.

9:21am (Zim time) Wicket: After a slow start Zimbabwe loose their first wicket, Zimbabwe 11/1 (4.5 ov). Hamilton Masakadza caught †Chandimal b Kulasekara 4 (23b 0×4 0×6) SR: 17.39. Tatenda Taibu is the new batsman.

Toss: Sri Lanka have won the toss and have chosen to field. Important toss as in every game so far in this tournament, the side batting second has gone on to win. Zimbabwe now need to change that stat.

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, “A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides” by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher “Behind the Shades”

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don’t have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

In what is to be a preview of the final on the 9th of June, Zimbabwe take on Sri Lanka in the 5th ODI of the Tri-series between India, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka and will be played in Harare on 7th June 2010. After Zim’s record breaking second win against India on Thursday, Zimbabwe will go into this match with much confidence, but must play much petter than when these two teams last met where Sri Lanka easily beat Zimbabwe.

FREE – Watch Zimbabwe vs Sri Lanka Live

Live streaming of the Zimbabwe Sri Lanka game is available on-line through BetFair of all places!

Betfair is an online betting community and all you have to do is create an account with them and you can watch this and many other live sporting events including all of the games in this tri tournament. The best bit of all it is totally FREE – I did it myself and you don’t even have to deposit any money into your account:

To Watch the Game Live:

1. Go to the Betfair Website and create an account
2. Log in to your new account
3. Look for the Zimbabwe game under Sports/Cricket and click the Watch Sport Free on Bet Fair Live Video link on the right, or just look for the Live Video link anywhere on their site.

Updates – If you can’t watch it live, I will be updating this page throughout the day with the scores, just check the Latest Updates at the foot of this page.

Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe will be looking to continue their winning momentum against what is probably the best team in the tournament and in fact Zimbabwe last beat Sri Lanka in an ODI way back in April 2003, in Sharjah. But Zim can take many positives into the game as well as belief from their batting and especially their performance against India on Thursday. In all five games so far, the team chasing has won and so we can either hope that Elton Chigumbura wins the battle of the toss or if not, use this game as a chance for the team batting first to get sufficient practice in case they are put in again in the final.

Look out for Charles Coventry, who Since his record-breaking unbeaten 194 against Bangladesh last year, has scored just one fifty and needs to show some more consistency in the middle order and prove that his knock was no fluke. His 32 was important in Zimbabwe’s win against India in the first match, but in the next two games, he scored just 11 and 20.

Squad: Elton Chigumbura (Captain), AM Blignaut, CJ Chibhabha, CK Coventry, AG Cremer, CR Ervine, GA Lamb, H Masakadza, CB Mpofu, RW Price, EC Rainsford, V Sibanda, T Taibu†, BRM Taylor, P Utseya

Sri Lanka
After beating India on Saturday and easily beating Zim when the two teams last met, Sri Lanka will not be short on confidence and must enter the game as clear favourites, however Sri Lankan captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said after Saturday’s game that they will look to experiment before the final and try out some of the players in the bench wich could weaken the team for this game.

Squad: TM Dilshan (Captain), AD Mathews, LD Chandimal†, CRD Fernando, S Randiv, CK Kapugedera, KMDN Kulasekara, BAW Mendis, BMAJ Mendis, NLTC Perera, TT Samaraweera, LPC Silva, WU Tharanga, HDRL Thirimanne, T Thushara

Date and Time of the game
The match kicks off on the 7th June at 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT), or 8:00 British Summer Time. In Sri Lanka and India, the match starts at 12:30.
Hours of play (local time): 09.00 start, First Session 09.00-12.30, Interval 12.30-13.15, Second Session 13.15-16.45

Latest Updates:

3:52pm (Zim Time) That’s it, Zimbabwe now beat Sri Lanka by 8 wickets – fantastically well played by the whole team, especially Brendan Taylor, with some great backup from Tatenda Taibu and Chamu Chibhabha. Zimbabwe’s bowlers must also take credit to bowl Sri Lanka all out restricting them to 236.

3:52pm (Zim Time) A century for Brendan Taylor: 100 not out, that’s his second century in one day cricket. Zimbabwe 210/2. Zimbabwe require another 27 runs with 8 wickets and 35 balls remaining.

3:07pm (Zim Time) Wicket: Zimbabwe 148/2 (31.4 ov) – Chamu Chibhabha lbw bowled Dilshan 58 (81b 4×4 1×6) SR: 71.60. Zimbabwe require another 89 runs with 8 wickets and 18.2 overs remaining. Required Run Rate 4.85

2:22pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe going strong: 84/1 (16.4 ov). Zimbabwe require another 153 runs with 9 wickets and 33.1 overs remaining.

1:24pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe loose their first wicket: Zimbabwe 14/1 (4.2 ov) H Masakadza caught †Chandimal b Thushara 3 (15b 0×4 0×6) SR: 20.00. Zimbabwe require another 223 runs with 9 wickets and 45.4 overs remaining

12:16pm (Zim Time) Wicket Sri Lanka all out for 236 (47.5 ov) – not many teams bowl Sri Lanka out within their 50 overs, so great stuff Zim. Can they chase it down?

12:14pm (Zim Time) Wicket, great catch! Sri Lanka 235/8 (47.2 ov) T Thushara c Brendan Taylor bowled Ray Price 7 (8b 0×4 1×6) SR: 87.50

11:59am (Zim Time) Wicket, another one, two in one over! HDRL Thirimanne c Taylor b Mpofu 15 (21b 0×4 0×6) SR: 71.42 – great over from Chris Mpofu, 2 wickets and only 2 runs.

11:55am (Zim Time) Wicket, clean bowled: Sri Lanka 118/7 (44.2 ov) – NLTC Perera bowled Chris Mpofu 8 (16b 0×4 0×6) SR: 50.00

11:37am (Zim Time) Wicket, falling like flies at the moment: Sri Lanka 199/6 (39.4 ov) – TT Samaraweera run out 16 (31b 1×4 0×6) SR: 51.61

11:27am (Zim Time) Wicket: Sri Lanka 192/5 (37.5 ov) – BMAJ Mendis caught Brendan Taylor bowled Graeme Cremer 7 (8b 1×4 0×6) SR: 87.50

11:15am (Zim Time) Wicket: Sri Lanka 181/4 (35.3 ov) – WU Tharanga caught Charles Coventry bowled Graeme Cremer for 69 (84m 97b 5×4 0×6) SR: 71.13

10:50am (Zim Time) Wicket: Sri Lanka 155/3 (29.3 ov) – newly married, Hamilton Masakadza is the bowler as CK Kapugedera is caught for 12

10:34am (Zim Time) Wicket: Sri Lanka 134/2 – Dinesh Chandimal c Masakadza b Utseya 6 (13b 0×4 0×6) SR: 46.15

10:22am (Zim Time) Zim take their first wicket Sri Lanka 122/1 – TM Dilshan st Tatenda Taibu b Prosper Utseya 78 (66b 9×4 2×6) SR: 118.18

10:14am (Zim Time) Sri Lanka going well: 104/0 (18.0 ov) – Tillakaratne Dilshan 63, Upul Tharanga 39

Toss Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to field.

Pitch Report: Allan Donald thinks it looks a beautiful wicket and there shouldn’t be much moisture in it. The ball might stop a touch on the batsmen in the early part of the game.

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, “A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides” by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher “Behind the Shades”

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don’t have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

The 4th match in this Tri-Series and the first in Harare sees India take on Zimbabwe on the 3rd of June. Zimbabwe will be looking to bounce back from a poor performance where they lost badly to Sri Lanka in Bulawayo a few days ago, whilst India will be looking for revenge after their defeat to Zimbabwe in the opening game of the tournament.

FREE – Watch Zimbabwe vs India Live Online

You can watch live streaming of the Zimbabwe India game live on-line through BetFair of all places!

Betfair is an online betting site and all you have to do is open an account with them and you can watch this and many other live sporting events including all of the games in this tri tournament. The best bit of all it is totally FREE – I did it myself and you don’t even have to deposit any money into your account:

To Watch the Game Live:

1. Go to the Betfair Website and create an account
2. Log in to your new account
3. Look for the Zimbabwe game under Sports/Cricket and click the Watch Sport Free on Bet Fair Live Video link on the right, or just look for the Live Video link anywhere on their site.

Updates – If you can’t watch it live, I will be updating this page throughout the day with the scores, just check the Latest Updates at the foot of this page.

Date and Time of the game
The match kicks off on the 3rd June at 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT), or 8:00 British Summer Time. In Sri Lanka and India, the match starts at 12:30.
Hours of play (local time): 09.00 start, First Session 09.00-12.30, Interval 12.30-13.15, Second Session 13.15-16.45

Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe need to bounce back from defeat against Sri Lanka and prove that their win against India was not a fluke. To do this, they will have to perform better in all departments. Playing in Harare, which should offer better weather than what was experienced in Bulawayo, giving Zimbabwe a more even playing field. Our spinners will like it, so will our batsmen who struggled when it was overcast in Bulawayo, but made merry when it was sunny. It is not quite the do-or-leave situation, but neither team will want to leave it until they face Sri Lanka, on paper the strongest team in the tournament.

Look out for Hamilton Masakadza, who in both of Zimbabwe’s games so far has got off to a quick start. In the first he failed to convert it into a big score, and in the second game, he found himself out of partners. In his home-town, he will want to continue the starts and ideally finish the job himself. Zimbabwe should have a slightly stronger line up today as Tatenda Taibu comes in for Chris Mpofu

Possible Zimbabwe team: 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Brendan Taylor (wk) 3 Charles Coventry, 4 Greg Lamb, 5 Craig Ervine, 6 Elton Chigumbura (capt), 7 Andy Blignaut, 8 Graeme Cremer, 9 Prosper Utseya, 10 Chris Mpofu, 11 Ray Price.

India
India have gone from the low of losing pretty badly to Zimbabwe to the high of winning against Sri Lanka two days later. A player to watch is Rohit Sharma, who has taken his ODI average from 25.6 to 31.9, has nearly doubled his List A centuries count, and if he gets a century in this game, will equal the world record for centuries in consecutive innings.

Possible Indian Team: 1 M Vijay, 2 Dinesh Karthik/Naman Ojha (wk), 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Rohit Sharma, 5 Suresh Raina (capt), 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Amit Mishra, 9 Ashok Dinda, 10 Pragyan Ojha, 11 Umesh Yadav

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Latest Updates:

3:50pm Match over Zimbabwe Win by 7 wickets with over 11 overs to go, so Zim claim the bonus point and are into the final \o/

3:33pm Zimbabwe 173/3 (34.1 ov) Zimbabwe require another 22 runs with 7 wickets and 15.5 overs remaining

3:20pm Wicket: Zimbabwe 161/2 (31.4 ov): Jadeja to Masakadza, OUT, Virat Kohli, pulled to right of midwicket where Virat dives full stretch to take a good catch.

2:57pm Wicket: Zim loose their first wicket, Taylor chips one into the air to long off and an easy catch is taken. BRM Taylor c Vijay b Ojha 74 (90b 6×4 1×6) SR: 82.22. Zimbabwe now 128/1 (26.3 ov). Charles Coventry in early at number 3 (usually bats at number 5) Zim obviously looking for the bonus point that will guarantee them a place in the final. (You get a bonus point if you win in 40 overs)

2:54pm Zimbabwe 128/0 (25.6 ov) and require another 69 runs with 10 wickets and 24.0 overs remaining (Required RR 2.9) Brendan Taylor 72, Hamilton Masakadza 47 Current partnership 126 runs, 26.2 overs, RR: 4.78 (Masakadza 47, Taylor 72)

2:32pm Zimbabwe get to 100 without loosing a wicket: Zimbabwe 101/0 and need 93 to win from 30.3 overs

2:19pm Brendan Taylor goes to 50 not out in his 100th cricket match for Zimbabwe.

2:13pm Current Match Status:

2:00pm Zimbabwe looking good after 10.1 overs: 57/0 require another 138 runs with 10 wickets and 39.5 overs remaining. Brendan Taylor 35, Hamilton Masakadza 20

1:38pm Latest score: Zimbabwe 26/0 (6.3 ov) and require another 175 runs with 10 wickets and 44.0 overs remaining, Required Run Rate of 3.91 Brendan Taylor 18, Hamilton Masakadza 7 Current partnership 26 runs, 6.3 overs, RR: 4.00 (Masakadza 7, Taylor 18)

1:28pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe make slow start to run chase: Zimbabwe 5/0 (2.6 ov) and require another 190 runs with 10 wickets and 47.0 overs remaining at 4.04 runs per over

12:32pm (Zim Time) End of India’s Innings: India 194/9 (50.0 ov) India RR 3.88. Zimbabwe have some excellent bowling figures, with some excellent economy rates, especially for Andy Blignaut with only 22 runs scored off his full 10 overs:

12:03pm (Zim Time) Wicket: India now 176/8 (44.5 overs) AB Dinda c Taylor b Lamb 16 (17b 1×4 0×6) SR: 94.11. India Run rate: 3.92

11:57am India 158/7 – great to see Harare Sports Club bathed in sunlight and looking so good:

11:31am Phew, I can’t keep up – Zimbabwe get another wicket: India now 128/7 after 37.3 overs: A Mishra caught Charles Coventry bowled Graeme Cremer for 0 (3b 0×4 0×6) SR: 0.00

11:28am Wicket: No sooner as I post an image of the bowling figures and Zim get another wicket. Ray Price gets one now! India are 127/6 after 36 overs. YK Pathan lbw b Price 15 (25b 0×4 1×6) SR: 60.00

11:27am Zimbabwe bowling figures after 36 overs:

10:51am Another run out! – India now 5 down! 95/5 This time it is Elton Chigumbura with some great fielding – go Zimbabwe! Details RG Sharma run out 13 (25b 0×4 0×6) SR: 52.00
Fall of wicket: 95/5 (27.5 ov); Partnership: 3 runs, 1.1 overs, RR: 2.57 (Sharma 2, Jadeja 1)

10:45am There is a direct hit at the stumps – batsman short of the crease India now 4 down! 92/4 Fantastic fielding from Andy Blignaut, he is having a great game after an absence from cricket of 4 years!

10:37am (Zim Time) Wicket: India now 86/3 (25 overs) V Kohli caught Taibu bowled Utseya for 18 (29b 1×4 0×6) SR: 62.06 Partnership: 23 runs, 6.2 overs, RR: 3.63 (Sharma 8, Kohli 15)

10:06am (Zim Time) Another wicket! India now 63/2 (18.4 ov) – M Vijay stumped by †Taibu bowled Lamb for 21 (56b 0×4 0×6) SR: 37.50

10:06am (Zim Time) Zim claim their first wicket and it’s Dinesh Karthik caught by Tatenda Taibu off the bowling of Greg Lamb for 33 (47b 4×4 0×6) SR: 70.21- India are 58/1 after 16.1 Overs run rate 3.58

9:36am (Zim Time) Slow going at the moment for the Indians, with Andy Blignaut bowling well : End of over 7 (1 run) India 18/0 (RR: 2.57) M Vijay 4* (20b) KD Karthik 9* (22b 1×4) RW Price 3-0-11-0 AM Blignaut 4-0-7-0

9:22am (Zim Time) India 11/0 (4.3 ov) Dinesh Karthik(rhb) 6 Murali Vijay 1

9:00am (Zim Time) Zimbabwe have won the toss and elected to field. Knowing what total to chase seems to work well for Zimbabwe. There is one change to the team, Zim have replaced the only specialist medium-pacer, Chris Mpofu with wicketkeeper-batsman, Tatenda Taibu. India are with the same team that thrashed Sri Lanka, giving the M Vijay-Dinesh Karthik opening combination another go.

Pitch report from CricInfo: Neil Manthorp reckons there would be a bit in it for the seamers for the first thirty minutes. However, he reckons this is the least amount of grass cover on this pitch that he has seen in some time. Some bald patches. Spinners should come on later in the game. Zimbabwe have four spinners.

7:32am (Zim Time) Good morning everyone, hope you had a good nights sleep and that you are ready for some cricket. The weather in Harare: A chilly 8°C start to the day and the forecast is good with a high of 21°C. It looks like it is going to be a typical winters day in Zim – sunny & no chance of rain!

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, “A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides” by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher “Behind the Shades”

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don’t have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk

With Zimbabwe winning their opening game against India, and India then beating Sri Lanka in the second game on Sunday, this is a must win game for the Sri Lankans.

FREE – Watch Zimbabwe vs Sri Lanka Live

You can watch live streaming of the Zimbabwe Sri Lanka game live on-line through BetFair of all places!

Betfair is an online betting site and all you have to do is open an account with them and you can watch this and many other live sporting events including all of the games in this tri tournament. The best bit of all it is totally FREE – I did it myself and you don’t even have to deposit any money into your account:

To Watch the Game Live:

1. Go to the Betfair Website and create an account
2. Log in to your new account
3. Look for the Zimbabwe game under Sports/Cricket and click the Watch Sport Free on Bet Fair Live Video link on the right, or just look for the Live Video link anywhere on their site.

Updates – If you can’t watch it live, I will be updating this page throughout the day with the scores, just check the Latest Updates at the foot of this page.

Date and Time of the game
The match kicks off on the 1st June at 09:00 local time (07:00 GMT), or 8:00 British Summer Time. In Sri Lanka and India, the match starts at 12:30.
Hours of play (local time): 09.00 start, First Session 09.00-12.30, Interval 12.30-13.15, Second Session 13.15-16.45

Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe will be looking to continue their winning momentum against Sri Lanka and they take many positives as well as belief from their batting performance against India.

Zimbabwe’s confidence should be good as even though they didn’t win a game in the recent Twenty20 World Cup, they did very well in the warm-up games by defeating Australia and Pakistan. This tri-series has hinted at more progress as they produced a clinical win against India in the first ODI in Bulawayo. They have to now to show they can sustain their recent performances. The game against Sri Lanka provides another opportunity.

We hope that Brendan Taylor and Craig Ervine can continue their current fine form after they and the rest of the top order batsmen successfully chased down a target of 286 against India. Another player to watch is Ray Price who has an economy rate of 3.88 from 75 ODIs! Against Sri Lanka his economy rate gets even better: just 3.36 from seven games – excellent.

Squad: E Chigumbura*, AM Blignaut, CJ Chibhabha, CK Coventry, AG Cremer, CR Ervine, GA Lamb, H Masakadza, CB Mpofu, RW Price, EC Rainsford, V Sibanda, T Taibu†, BRM Taylor, P Utseya

Sri Lanka
Even though it was a young side, Sri Lanka will not be happy about being totally outperformed by the also young Indian team on Sunday. Another defeat would take them very close to an early exit from the tournament.

Squad: TM Dilshan*, AD Mathews, LD Chandimal†, CRD Fernando, S Randiv, CK Kapugedera, KMDN Kulasekara, BAW Mendis, BMAJ Mendis, NLTC Perera, TT Samaraweera, LPC Silva, WU Tharanga, HDRL Thirimanne, T Thushara

Latest Updates:

4.15pm (Zim Time) Match Over – Sri Lanka 119/1 (15.2/26 ov) – Zimbabwe 118 (24.5/26 ov) Sri Lanka won by 9 wickets (with 64 balls remaining). Zimbabwe will be disappointed with their batting performance – 118 was never going to be enough to defend.

Only Hamilton Masakadza (62) turned up for Zimbabwe. Sri Lanka played well with both the ball and bat, their bowling was aggressive and effective with seam and spin alowing them to strangle and harass the hosts who just managed to get 118. Only Masakadza managed to successfully combine aggressive intent with the required skill that the rain-reduced 26-over game demanded of the batsmen.

Cricinfo: Zim have let themselves down big time today, and squandered their advantage on the league table. Sri Lanka have jumped into the lead, and there is a lot to play for going into the second round of league games.

3.55pm (Zim Time) Sri Lanka 86/1 (10.5/26 ov) – Sri Lanka require another 33 runs with 9 wickets and 15.1 overs remaining. Last Wicket: WU Tharanga run out 40 (37b 6×4 0×6) SR: 108.10

3.42pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe were all out for 118 (24.5/26 ov) Sri Lanka currently have 54/0 (7.5/26 ov) – Sri Lanka require another 65 runs with 10 wickets and 18.1 overs remaining.

2.24pm (Zim Time) Things going from bad to worse – another wicket! Zimbabwe 92/8 – Hamilton Masakadza (47) and Ray Price (0) – Last wicket: P Utseya st †Chandimal b BMAJ Mendis 0 (3b 0×4 0×6) SR: 0.00 – thats 5 wickets down with only 17 runs scored.

2.22pm (Zim Time) Things not looking good Zim have lost three very quick wickets: Zimbabwe 90/7 – Hamilton Masakadza (46) and Prosper Utseya (0) – Last wicket: AG Cremer b Randiv 2 (3b 0×4 0×6) SR: 66.66

1.45pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe 48/2 – Hamilton Masakadza (30) and Craig Ervine (1) – Last wicket: GA Lamb c BMAJ Mendis b BAW Mendis 10 (19b 0×4 0×6) SR: 52.63

1.28pm (Zim Time) Zimbabwe 24/1 – Hamilton Masakadza (11) and Greg lamb (9) – Last wicket: BRM Taylor c †Chandimal b Fernando 2 (5b 0×4 0×6) SR: 40.00

Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to field. Angelo Mathews, who picked an injury, and Thilan Samaraweera are not playing today. Jeevan Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal come in, while Zimbabwe are unchanged. Chigumbura comments that one area his side is worried about is the extras – they were horrendous against India and need to address that, more so in an overs-reduced game. The Lankans are out limbering up. Time for action.

12.40pm (Zim Time) The sun is now out and the clouds have receded, and It is going to be a 26-over game. Powerplays are reduced to 6, 3 and 2 overs each. Two bowlers can bowl six, while three others can bowl five each, so this is a bit like an extended Twenty20 game. Zimbabwe will fancy their chances.

12.25pm (Zim Time) No new official updates from the last one – I am still watching groundsman working on the field ensuring the grounds are ready, hopefully for a 1.00pm start (35 minutes from now). It is still not raining. As far as I know the toss has not yet happened and the teams have NOT yet been announced.

10:50am (local time) Some Good news, the rain has stopped and play is due to start 1pm local (12pm British summer time) – reduced to 27 overs each

10:30am (local time) Some official news: Still some hope as Umpire Russel Tiffin says: “We plan to inspect at 12.30 (local time) and if we cannot start then we will have to abandon the game.” Groundsman Douglas Higgins said the outfield is holding up and would be playable if the rain did not continue for long.

10:16am (local time) If you are watching the live pictures, you will see that the covers have come off and there are what looks like groundsmen on the pitch – No official news, but possibly a chance of play soon?

9:17am (local) It seems that rain has eased a little and they are hoping to get some play today, but the covers are firmly in place, covering the area surrounding the square. It has been raining all night in Bulawayo and apart from the rain, it is very cold!

8:34am (local) Raining in Bulawayo i’m afraid! – the covers are out and there is some light rain. It seem thatthe game will probably not start on time. Early showers could make the toss even more vital than it has been in the first couple of games. The team batting second has won both matches so far, and with rain and cloud in the air, expect the team winning the toss to elect to field today as well.

Zimbabwe Cricket Books

Amazon, have a bunch of Zim related cricket books, including "Blood, Sweat And Treason" by Henry Olonga, “A History of the Rhodesia and Zimbabwe National Sides” by Jonty Winch who traces the history of cricket in this country (Zimbabwe) from the first recorded game played in 1890, through two World Wars and a guerilla war, to the comparative peace of post-independence and eventual world recognition in the 1980s when Zimbabwe was able to send a side to England to take part in the I.C.C. Trophy competition which it won.

There is also the Autobiography of another great Zimbabwean cricket coach Duncan Fletcher “Behind the Shades”

USA: Amazon.com

Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.com

At the moment Amazon UK don’t have as wide selection as the US site, but I have ordered books from the US and had them delivered to the UK with no problems.

UK: Amazon.co.uk
Zimbabwe Cricket on Amazon.co.uk