Nyamhuri and Ngarava stun Bangladesh by defending 141

It was Newman Nyamhuri’s day – with bat and ball, and in the field. First, he scored a career-best 33 from No. 9 to push Zimbabwe from 70 for 8 to 141. Then he took two catches in the deep, the first of them an agile effort while tip-toeing the fine-leg boundary. Nyamhuri also broke Bangladesh’s 49-run fourth-wicket stand to open the floodgates for a memorable win. Zimbabwe successfully defended 141, beating Bangladesh by 25 runs. It was a bowlers’ ODI played on a spicy pitch in Harare. Nahid Rana had made that much apparent by picking up 6 for 21, the best figures by a Bangladesh bowler in the format. The pace and bounce that tested Zimbabwe’s batters also troubled Bangladesh, as not a single over of spin was bowled out of the 33.1 needed for the defence. Left-arm quick Richard Ngarava, leading Zimbabwe in an ODI for the first time, delivered with both bat and ball too. Ngarava added 63 with Nyamhuri for the ninth wicket, during which he scored 27. Fittingly, he took the final Bangladesh wicket to fall and finished with 3 for 31 to wrap victory. Much of the damage Bangladesh sustained was of their own doing. After their top three batters threw their wickets away, Towhid Hridoy and Mehidy Hasan Miraz repeated the trick against deliveries they should ideally have put away to the boundary.

Nahid Rana took career-best and Bangladesh’s best ODI figures of 6 for 21 [Zimbabwe Cricket]

It all started in the second over, bowled by Blessing Muzarabani, as Tanzid Hasan pulled a short ball to Nyamhuri, who was placed a straighter than usual at fine leg. When Nyamhuri realised momentum was taking him beyond the boundary, he threw the ball back on the field of play, stepped over, then back in and calmly completed the catch. In the fourth over, Najmul Hossain Shanto sliced one to Ben Curran at deep third as Muzarabani got his second wicket. Three balls later, Soumya Sarkar slashed Ngarava to deep third as well, as Nyamhuri took his second catch. Bangladesh were 17 for 3 and Zimbabwe sniffed an upset, but Hridoy and Nurul Hasan dug in. Ngarava used attacking fields – two slips were a given for much of the partnership – as both batters kept getting beaten. Hridoy and Nurul seemed in no hurry, but just when Bangladesh were beginning to gradually regain momentum, Hridoy, on 25, flashed at a short and wide ball outside off from Nyamhuri in the 19th over. Curran, at deep third, almost overran the ball before swiftly moving to his left to catch it. From there, it all unraveled for Bangladesh. From 66 for 3, they lost 7 for 50 to be bowled out for 116. Come the 21st over, Nyamhuri had Mosaddek Hossain fending behind. Three overs later, Mehidy fell to another great effort in the outfield, as Brian Bennett rushed forward to take a low catch at deep cover point to give Ngarava his second wicket. At 89 for 6, Rishad Hossain joined Nurul as the last recognised batters for Bangladesh but they couldn’t do much. With no DRS available, Nurul, on 31, was unable to review what seemed like a tight lbw decision that went against him. Evans, who had landed that blow, had Rishad and Taskin caught in his next two overs, before Ngarava sealed victory.

Newman Nyamhuri getting Towhid Hridoy was a key moment in the chase [Zimbabwe Cricket]

But before Bangladesh, Zimbabwe’s batting had collapsed as well. They lost 8 for 34 after their openers Bennett and Curran put on 36. Mehidy had elected to bowl after he spotted moisture in the pitch and overcast conditions above. While the start didn’t go his bowlers’ way, it turned around in no time. Curran was run out for 18 as Mehidy’s throw from mid-off hit the stumps, before Taskin and Rana started the party. Taskin had Bennett caught for 17 two balls later, and started the ninth over by bowling Craig Ervine for a first-ball duck with a beautiful ball that was short and seamed away to hit the top of middle stump. Rana got into the act later, in the 14th over, and his extra pace on a helpful pitch made him difficult to handle. By the time his first spell ended, Rana had Sikandar Raza caught behind, Wessly Madhevere fending to second slip, Clive Madande slicing to point, Innocent Kaia also caught by the wicketkeeper, and Evans lbw. Evans was Rana’s fifth wicket, as the Bangladesh quick completed his third ODI five-for of the year. Rana got his sixth wicket when he cleaned Ngarava up with a yorker to end what turned out to be a defining stand. But where Bangladesh threatened to bowl Zimbabwe out for a sub-100 total, Nyamhuri and Ngarava fought back to give Zimbabwe an outside chance. By the end of the day, they also contributed with the ball to convert that outside chance into victory. Scores: Zimbabwe 141 in 36.4 overs (Newman Nyamhuri 33, Richard Ngarava 27; Nahid Rana 6-21, Taskin Ahmed 2-32) beat Bangladesh 116 in 33.1 overs (Nurul Hasan 31, Towhid Hridroy 25; Richard Ngarava 3-31, Brad Evans 3-34, Newman Nyamhuri 2-22, Blessing Muzarabani 2-24) by 25 runs [Cricinfo]