India Beats Zimbabwe in a Close Finish
April 6, 1998 - 0:0
BARODA - India pulled off a 12-run victory against Zimbabwe after surrendering the initiative in a triangular one-day series cricket match on Sunday. Chasing a target of 275 runs off 49 overs, Zimbabwe was given a blazing start by openers Alistair Campbell (60) and Grant Flower (57) and appeared to be coasting toward victory with the scorecard reading 212 for 3 in the 40th over.
But it suffered a batting collapse in the face of some accurate spin bowling by Indians, especially young left-arm Spinner Rahul Sanghvi who captured three wickets for 25 runs. Zimbabwe lost seven wickets for just 50 runs. The last two batsmen got run out in the last over when their side needed 17 runs to win. We stole defeat from the jaws of victory, said a dejected Zimbabwean skipper Campbell after the match.
India's young all-rounder Hrishikesh Kanitkar was adjudged man of the match for scoring a breezy 35 runs and capturing two Zimbabwean wickets at a crucial juncture. One over from Zimbabwean innings was chopped by the match referee for slow overrate during India's knock. Zimbabwe had lost its first match of the triangular series to Australia by 13 runs in an exciting finish on Friday. India defeated both Australia and Zimbabwe in the first round of the competition.
The three teams will clash again in the second round to decide the finalists. Earlier, half centuries by Saurav Ganguly and Ajay Jadeja helped India recover from a poor start to reach 274 for five wickets in the allotted 50 overs. A swashbuckling 78 off 77 deliveries by Jadeja restored the Indian dominance in the slog overs. He smashed five boundaries and one six as India put on 71 runs in the last seven overs.
Zimbabwe won the toss and asked India to bat first. The gambit paid off as the visitors ran out India's star batsman Sachin Tendulkar for five runs. Zimbabwe struck another quick blow getting rid of skipper Mohammed Azharuddin without scoring. India was in dire straits scoring mere 24 runs in the first 10 overs. Back to the side after sitting out India's opening match against Australia for questioning the umpire's decision, Saurav Ganguly took time to settle down but went on to score 83 runs.
He was helped by Vinod Kambli (39 off 45 deliveries) and Hrishikesh Kanitkar ( 35 off 31 deliveries) to repair the Indian innings. Heath Streak (2 for 42) and Guy Whittal (1 for 70) were the most successful Zimbabwean bowlers. (AP)
But it suffered a batting collapse in the face of some accurate spin bowling by Indians, especially young left-arm Spinner Rahul Sanghvi who captured three wickets for 25 runs. Zimbabwe lost seven wickets for just 50 runs. The last two batsmen got run out in the last over when their side needed 17 runs to win. We stole defeat from the jaws of victory, said a dejected Zimbabwean skipper Campbell after the match.
India's young all-rounder Hrishikesh Kanitkar was adjudged man of the match for scoring a breezy 35 runs and capturing two Zimbabwean wickets at a crucial juncture. One over from Zimbabwean innings was chopped by the match referee for slow overrate during India's knock. Zimbabwe had lost its first match of the triangular series to Australia by 13 runs in an exciting finish on Friday. India defeated both Australia and Zimbabwe in the first round of the competition.
The three teams will clash again in the second round to decide the finalists. Earlier, half centuries by Saurav Ganguly and Ajay Jadeja helped India recover from a poor start to reach 274 for five wickets in the allotted 50 overs. A swashbuckling 78 off 77 deliveries by Jadeja restored the Indian dominance in the slog overs. He smashed five boundaries and one six as India put on 71 runs in the last seven overs.
Zimbabwe won the toss and asked India to bat first. The gambit paid off as the visitors ran out India's star batsman Sachin Tendulkar for five runs. Zimbabwe struck another quick blow getting rid of skipper Mohammed Azharuddin without scoring. India was in dire straits scoring mere 24 runs in the first 10 overs. Back to the side after sitting out India's opening match against Australia for questioning the umpire's decision, Saurav Ganguly took time to settle down but went on to score 83 runs.
He was helped by Vinod Kambli (39 off 45 deliveries) and Hrishikesh Kanitkar ( 35 off 31 deliveries) to repair the Indian innings. Heath Streak (2 for 42) and Guy Whittal (1 for 70) were the most successful Zimbabwean bowlers. (AP)