Taylor is not a hard-nosed criminal: Gambhir wants ICC to go soft on the Zimbabwean
Brendan Taylor reveals horrific details of being coerced to spot fix by Indian businessmen
Ireland level series courtesy Joshua Little and Andy McBrine stellar bowling performances
Brendan Taylor to bid adieu to international cricket
Zimbabwe wicket-keeper batsman Brendan Taylor has announced his retirement and the ODI fixture against Ireland on Monday will be his last outing. "It's with a heavy heart that I'm announcing that tomorrow is my last game for my beloved country," Taylor stated on a Twitter post on Sunday. "17 years of extreme highs and extreme lows and I wouldn't change it for the world.” "It's taught me to be humble, to always remind myself how lucky I was to be in the position I was in for so long. To wear the badge with pride and leave everything on the field. My goal was to always leave the team in a better position as when I first arrived back in 2004, I hope I have done that." Taylor has been capped 34 times in Tests while has played 204 ODIs and 45 T20Is respectively. He has notched up 2320 runs in Test cricket and is Zimbabwe’s fourth-highest run-getter in the format. The right-hander was the leading run-scorer for Zimbabwe in 2015 World Cup while returned back to the national side for the qualifiers of the 2019 edition. He had signed up for Nottinghamshire as a Kolpak player and featured in three seasons before making a return. Zimbabwe presently lead the series 1-0 against Ireland after they won the first ODI while the second one was washed away due to rain.
IRE vs ZIM | Sikandar Raza, Blessing Muzarabani lead Zimbabwe to victory in first ODI
Zimbabwe registered only their second win in the ICC World Cup Super League 2020-22 when they defeated Ireland by 38 runs in the first match of the three-match series at Civil Service Cricket Club in Belfast. All-rounder Sikandar Raza, who got into the team for the first time after missing the entire five-match T20I series proved to be a good asset with the bat while Sean Williams and Brendan Taylor, the other two senior members of the team also did well to merit their inclusion. Batting first, Zimbabwe put up a competitive total of 266-7 courtesy of a fighting inning by skipper Craig Ervine (64 off 96) and flourishing innings by Skandar Raza (59* off 44) and Brendan Taylor (49 off 45). Late order hitting by Luke Jongwe played an important role as well. For Ireland, each of the six bowlers tried, picked a wicket each while Jongwe was run out. In its attempt to chase down the total, the Irish had a decent enough start with the openers putting up a 64 run stand for the first wicket. While Stirling got out eventually unable to score quickly which is his ideal way to play, skipper Balbirnie followed him to the dressing room soon as well. Harry Tector then combined with William Porterfield and the two added 71 runs for the third wicket as Porterfield reached his 19th ODI fifty. But once Porterfield was dismissed by Jongwe, it became very difficult for Ireland to get going as spinners Williams, Wesley Madhevere, Raza and Wellington Masakadza. However, it was Blessing Muzarabani who took advantage of that pressure created by spinners as he ran through the Irish middle order picking up four wickets in his 9.4 overs. In the end, even after Porterfoeld’s and Tector’s fifties, Ireland folded out for 228 and thus lost the game by 45 runs. Raza was adjudged Man of the Match for his batting. The two teams will now clash in the second ODI on September 10 at the same venue.
Sean Williams blames coach Lalchand Rajput for creating mistrust in Zimbabwe camp
Zimbabwe Test captain Sean Williams dropped a bomb just ahead of the start of their limited-overs tour against Ireland as he blamed coach Lalchand Rajput for creating mistrust in the Zimbabwean camp, threatening to quit international cricket and warning about the future of the upcoming stars of Chevrons’ cricket. "I can't see a way forward under coach [Lalchand] Rajput. The environment he has created in the team is bad,” the Test skipper was quoted as saying by Sportskeeda. “There is too much talking and backbiting which creates mistrust,” he added. Saying that while he can afford to quit international cricket and walk away and play club cricket elsewhere, Williams was worried about the young Zimabawe cricketers suffering because of the toxic environment. "I am in a position now where I can go. I am not scared and I will not back down from anyone. My major concern is the future of the rest of the players. If they (Zimbabwe Cricket) don't do something now, guys like Wesley [Madhevere] may go too, and that guy is a national treasure," Williams said. It could maybe be an outcome of the rift only between Williams and other senior players and the coach that Zimbabwe in their first match of the five-match T20I series against Ireland decided to bench star players like Williams himself, Sikandar Raza and Brendan Taylor. Willaims was called in the limited-overs squad of the team after missing the entire home series against Bangladesh. The 34-year-old has so far played 136 ODIs, 46 T20Is and 14 Tests for the team from Southern Africa and seems to still have at least 3-4 years of good cricket left in him.
Craig Ervine becomes fifth Zimbabwe captain since 2020, to lead side on Ireland-Scotland tour
The great captaincy juggle in Zimbabwe cricket continued even as they named Craig Ervine skipper for the team’s Ireland and Scotland tour starting August 27 in Clontarf. The left-hander has become the fifth man since 2020 to lead the team in limited-overs cricket. Prior to him, the team have tried Chamu Chibhabha, Brendan Taylor, Sikandar Raza and Test captain Sean Williams in the same role with little success. Although this would be the first captaincy experience of the 36-year-old in limited-overs cricket, he previously led Zimbabwe in a Test match, against Bangladesh in Dhaka in 2020. The southpaw has played 18 Tests, 96 ODIs and 26 T20Is for the Chevrons. However, he missed out on the ODIs, T20Is and lone Test against Bangladesh at home. The Zimbabwe team will play five T20Is and three ODIs against Ireland and the ODIs will be part of the Cricket World Cup Super League, which is also the qualifying tournament for the 2023 ODI World Cup to be hosted by India. With just a single victory from their six games in the league so far, Zimbabwe are placed bottom. Only the top seven tames will qualify directly for the World Cup with India qualifying as a host to make the top eight teams. The rest two would come through a qualifying tournament. From Ireland, the Ervine led side would march south to Scotland and play three T20Is in Edinburgh as well. Zimbabwe squad for Ireland and Scotland tours: Craig Ervine (capt), Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Luke Jongwe, Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, Wessely Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tarisai Musakanda, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Brendan Taylor, Donald Tiripano, Sean Williams
Brendan Taylor, Craig Ervine and Sean Williams return for Ireland and Scotland tour
Zimbabwe will be bolstered by the return of three of their experienced players in the form of Brendan Taylor, Sean Williams and Craig Ervine for the upcoming tour of Ireland and Scotland. Zimbabwe is slated to play five T20Is and three ODIs against England started from 27th August before they travel to Scotland for a three-match T20I series kicking off from 15th September. Taylor who is currently the best batsman in the team was rested for the home T20I series against Bangladesh. Meanwhile, the likes of Craig Ervine and Sean Williams was forced to miss the full series comprising of a one-off Test, three ODIs and three T20Is after coming in close contact with a person who contracted COVID-19. The selectors have decided to retain the rest of their fifteen members who played against Bangladesh. It must also be noted that the three ODIs against Ireland will be part of the ICC ODI Super League. Zimbabwe is currently languishing at the bottom of the points table with just a solitary win from six outings. Zimbabwe needs to start winning on a more consistent basis to harbour hopes of qualifying for the 2023 ODI World Cup. They will be highly reliant on the services of Wesley Madhevere who was the highest run-scorer for them in the Bangladesh series amassing 150 runs in three outings. His knock of 73 played a pivotal role in ensuring that Zimbabwe won their only match of the tour. Meanwhile, the bowling department looks sorted with the likes of Blessing Muzarabani leading the attack. Full Squad: Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Craig Ervine, Luke Jongwe, Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, Wessely Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tarisai Musakanda, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Brendan Taylor, Sean Williams, Donald Tiripano.
Zimbabwe - Bangladesh T20 series preponed to conclude on July 25
The upcoming T20 series between Zimbabwe and Bangladesh has been preponed and it will now conclude on July 25 instead of the earlier scheduled date of July 27, Zimbabwe Cricket said in a tweet. The three-game series was supposed to be played on July 23, 25 and 27 but now it will be played on July 22, 23 and 25 as per the revised schedule. However, there is no change in the venue of matches and all of them will be played at the Harare Sports Club in Harare. Bangladesh are on a full tour of Zimbabwe comprising of all formats of the game. In the only Test of the series, the tourists register a big victory by 220 runs and they have also sealed the three-match long ODI series by winning the first two games so far. Zimbabwe have not been able to put up a strong fight against Bangladesh and a gulf between the sides have been brutally exposed by a quality Bangladeshi side. Both the list of leading wicket-taker and highest run-scorer across the Test and ODI series have been dominated by Bangladesh players and Zimbabwe have been handed a harsh reality check about the state of their game.
ZIM vs BAN: Patient Shakib leads Tigers to unassailable 2-0 lead; wins a humdinger at Harare
It might have just taken a lucky four on the last ball of the 49th over to ease the pressure put on by the Zimbabwe unit throughout the Bangladesh chase, but star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan caressing the first ball of the 50th over by Blessing Muzarabani to four past the point was probably the fitting end to a match that was fought evenly till the very end. Shakib missed out on his hundred by just four runs but would have been more than relieved to see his team home, which at one point in time looked unbelievable, to say the least. At 145-6 with all the recognised batsmen, except Shakib back in the hut, Zimbabwe fancied themselves to get a win and take the series to the finale. However, the 34-year-old had other ideas as he first added 28 for the seventh wicket with Afif Hossain to take the game close and then an unbeaten 69 off just 64 balls with Mohammad Saifuddin to see the Tigers home. The only real chance that the Zimbabwe players got to remove Shakib was in the 48th over, when trying to go over the inner circle, he almost hit to short third man, but the jump by Richard Ngarava wasn’t well-timed and the ball could only touch his palms and ricochet towards the boundary. The chase of 241 by the Men in Green and Red wasn’t up to the mark at all as captain Tamim Iqbal and last match centurion Liton Das were out even before the team fifty could be reached. Soon, they were 75-4 with youngsters Mosaddek Hossain and Mohammad Mithun letting go of an opportunity to do well. Mahmudullah tried to stitch in partnership together, but it could only last 55 runs as Muzarabaniu removed the right-hand batter. Soon, Mehidy Hasan was removed too to get Bangladesh in all sorts of trouble and that’s when Shakib decided to take things in control. Earlier in the day, on the back of a Wesely Madhevere half-century and some important contributions by skipper Brendan Taylor, Sikandar Raza and Regis Chakabva, Zimbabwe were able to get to 240. However, the highlight of the innings was the bizarre ghit wicket of Taylor. He was given out when he hit the bails with his bat after the ball was out of play and he had already hit a shot and was shadow practising. Having now won the series Bangladesh wouldn’t want to let it go easy in the third match as every match counts for the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League and with three wins from this series they would remain top of the table in the league. While Zimbabwe would look to at least get one back to salvage some pride with the final game on Tuesday, July 20.
Watch | Zimbabwe skipper Brendan Taylor given out in a bizzare hit-wicket dismissal
It was a weird dismissal, to say the least as Brendan Taylor,l the skipper of Zimbabwe was declared hit wicket after he hit the bails while practising a shadow shot, just after he had left the second ball of the 25th over, moments after trying a ramp shot and the keeper had collected it. It wasn’t clear whether the fielding team appealed or the umpires took a ‘Suo Moto Cognizance’, but they did go upstairs and decided to declare the batter hit wicket. As expected, Taylor wasn’t happy with the dcesio0n and walked back shaking his head vehemently. He was batting at 46 off 47 balls and had hit a four just a delivery prior to the one on which he was declared out. Shoriful Islam was the bowler. In the laws of cricket, it says that the ball has to be in play and not dead before the batter hits his stumps. Also, the stumps must be hit while playing a shot and not while shadow practising and thus it did not sit well with many a cricket pundits as to why Taylor was given out. As far as the second ODI going on at Harare Sports Club is concerned, Zimbabwe managed to resurrect the innings somewhat after the Taylor wicket as Dion Myers and Wesley Medhevere and later on Medhevere and Sikandar Raza struck vital partnerships to guide the red and gold to 210-6 at the end of 45 overs with five more to play.
Highest wicket-taker in ODIs for Bangladesh, Shakib leads team to 155 run thrashing of Zimbabwe
Just as he picked up the wicket of Richard Ngarava on the fifth delivery of the 29th over of Zimbabwe innings to win the game for his country by a huge margin of 155 runs, Shakib Al Hasan recorded his third five-wicket haul in ODI cricket. The 34-year-old all-rounder is now also the proud record holder for most wickets by a Bangladeshi bowler in ODIs. Shakib surpassed former Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza’s previous record of 269 wickets by taking the wicket of Ryan Burl, which was his second wicket of the game and 270th of the 213 matches long ODI career which has all signs of extending up to the next 3-4 years. Apart from Shakib, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam picked one wicket each to reduce the hosts to 121-9. Since Timycen Maruma got injured while fielding, he could not come out to bat and the Zimbabwean innings ended at this lowly score to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The chase never got going for Brendan Taylor’s men as they kept losing wickets by playing lose shots. Nobody seemed to settle down as wicket-keeper batsman Regis Chakabva top-scored with 54 while Taylor himself scored a free-flowing 24 before a bad shot saw his demise. Earlier in the day, Bangladesh reached a more than competitive total of 276 thanks to a brilliant century by Liton Das and some late order hitting by Afif Hossain and Mehidy Hasan Miraz. Bangladesh were in a lot of trouble at 74-4 when Liton got together with Mahmudullah and stitched a 93 run partnership to provide much-needed stability to the innings. While Afif scored a 35 ball 45, Miraz and Mahmudullah recorded 26 and 33 against their names respectively. Das, who scored a scintillating 102 off 114 balls was adjudged Man of the Match at Harare Sports Club. The two teams will next meet each other at the same venue on Sunday, July 18 with Zimbabwe trying to stay in the series with a victory and Bangladesh looking to wrap up yet another series win.
Luke Jongwe removes Mehidy Hasan & Afif Hossain as Chakabva does a Dhoni to help Zimbabwe record team hattrick
It was going all nicely for Bangladesh until; the 49th over in their clash against Zimbabwe in the first of the three-match ODI series at Harare Sports Club. But in the 49th over by Luke Jongwe, they lost three wickets in a row, helping the hosts record a team hattrick. Jongwe, after being hit for a six on the second ball of his overcame back strong and got the six-hitter Mehidy Hasan Miraz caught at the deep extra cover on the third delivery. Afif Hossain, who went on strike as the batters had crossed while the catch was taken, tried to play a scoop over fine leg and in response exposed his wickets which were hit with a bull’s eye by the 26-year-old bowler. On a hattrick, the right arm pacer bowled a wide down the leg to Taskin Ahmed. In his next attempt, Jongwe bowled a full-length delivery on the legs which was dragged down to deep square leg by Ahmed. The batsmen ran two but a brilliant piece of work by wicketkeeper Regis Chakabva had Ahmed short of his ground before the bails were broken. The run-out dismissal was Dhnisque in ways more than one. First of all, Chakabva received a throw that was way off the mark and the 33-year-old wicket-keeper picked it and without even looking at the stumps, hit the woodwork with the ball passing through his legs. And suddenly from 265-6, they were 266-8. Earlier, after being asked to bat by Zimbabwe skipper Brendan Taylor, who was playing his 200th ODI game, Bangladesh didn’t have a good start. They lost their skipperTamim who went out without disturbing the scorers and thereby achieved a feat which he wouldn’t want on his CV. Iqbal with this duck now has most ducks for a Bangladeshi batter (34 in total) across formats and he surpassed his predecessor as Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza who has 33 ducks to his kitty. Other batters including star performer Shakib Al Hasan couldn’t do much either as the Tigers slumped to 74-4. It then took a combined effort from the centurions from the Test a week ago, Mahmudullah and Liton Das to stage another recovery for their team. The duo added 93 for the fifth wicket. While Mahmudullah was out for a mere 33, 26-year-old Das went on to score his fourth ODI hundred. He made 102 of 114 balls. But his wicket in the 42nd over with the Bangladesh score at 207, but the hosts in a spot of bother before Afif and Mehidy combined to get them to a respectable total. While Afif scored 45, the number two ranked ODI bowler Mehidy scored 25 balls 26.
ZIM vs BAN | Donald Tiripano rues missed opportunities, shows willingness to bat higher up the order
Zimbabwe all-rounder Donald Tiripano has said that Zimbabwe failed to get Bangladesh ‘by the throat’ and let them off the hook on the first day of the only Test between sides concluded yesterday in Harare. He said that the new ball bowlers put a lot of pressure on the Bangladesh top and upper-middle order before the lower order resurrected the tourists. Notably, Bangladesh were once languishing at 132/6 when the skipper Mominul Haque walked back to the pavilion. However, after that, Zimbabwe had to wait for a period of 42 overs and a 138 run partnership between Liton Das and Mahmudullah for the next wicket as the game drifted away from their grapes. "We started well in the first morning. The wicket was doing a bit. After taking six wickets, we let them off. Mahmudullah and Liton Das put together a partnership. I think we have to make sure that when we get into such positions, we have to get them by the throat and we have to finish them off,” Tiripano said. Tiripano also rued missed opportunities with the bat in the first innings as Zimbabwe floundered their great start with a collapse in the middle order. They were strolling at 225/2 before the collapse started and they were bundled out for a mere 276 runs in reply to Bangladesh’ mammoth 468 runs in the first innings. However, he did not downplay the number of positives that came Zimbabwe’s way in the Test match and said that the side will work hard to avoid playing catch up cricket in Test cricket. "It is unfortunate that we couldn't get a good total in the first innings. There are a lot of positives that came out from this game. Guys tried to score some runs and build partnerships by putting their head down. But we should work hard on our batting and make sure that we don't play catch up cricket in a Test match,” he added. It was a strange sort of game personally for Tiripano, who failed with the bat in the first innings but the team management showed faith in him by promoting him to the number five position in the second innings. Zimbabweans had their backs pushed against the wall on the final day but Tiripano held the fort from the other end and delayed the inevitability of Zimbabwe’s loss with a gutsy 52 off 144 balls. He repaid the faith shown in him by the team management and has shown willingness to ‘embrace’ a new role where he concedes he will be challenged and put under pressure. "It is a challenge that I am willing to take. I am happy to embrace it if given the chance to bat up the order. I like being challenged. I enjoy pressure," he said. Donald Tiripano had a mixed result in the Test both with the bat and ball but his willingness to take more responsibility for himself and promising sign in the second innnigs will give the team management a lot of hope in the near future.