Match report day 1 Manicaland v Mashonaland Logan Cup 2003/04 by John Ward

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Scorecard:

Manicaland v Matabeleland

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Toss: Matabeleland, to bat
Lunch: Matabeleland 165/2 off 33 overs (Siziba 36*, Strydom 76*).
Tea: Matabeleland 285/6 off 64.3 overs (Siziba 66*).
Close: Matabeleland 390; Manicaland 26/0 in 11 overs (Matambanadzo 8*, Manyande 12*).

 

Matabeleland, aided by numerous dropped catches, totalled 390 in their first innings against Manicaland at Mutare Sports Club but, thanks to an expensive miss of their own, failed to take a Manicaland wicket before the close while the home side compiled 26 runs. The feat of the day was a scorching century by Greg Strydom, who took just 78 balls to blast his way to 128 runs.

 

Both teams were severely depleted for this match, with the Zimbabwe A players still en route from Bangladesh and many of the leading international players coming out in support of Heath Streak and involved in crisis talks in Harare. The standard of cricket was therefore not great, but a few players rose above the general mediocrity to have a good day.

 

The morning began cloudy and then the sky cleared in time for the start of the match, as so often happens in Mutare. Wisdom Siziba and Hamilton Masakadza, on holiday from the University of the Free State in South Africa, opened for Matabeleland. Masakadza played a few classy strokes, including an impressive off-drive to the boundary, but has lacked match practice; with 8 to his credit he flashed outside the off stump to left-arm seamer Allan Mwayenga and was caught by Norbert Manyande, the stand-in wicketkeeper for the long-serving Neil Ferreira. Matabeleland were 14 for one.

 

Siziba settled in well, though Mr Extras was doing most of the scoring, while Mbeke Mabuza, promoted rather fortuitously, to number three, held his end up. The drinks break as so often proved a good change bowler, with Mabuza (10) edging Leon Soma to third slip; 59 for two.

 

Almost immediately the talented Greg Strydom settled in and started finding the boundary. He has a remarkable talent, but he has had disciplinary problems and it is reported that he cannot handle fast short-pitched bowling; certainly he tended to take a step back when the seamers of lesser speed here bowled at his pads or body. His short slim build belies his powerful hitting against the quality of bowlers abounding in Logan Cup cricket. Playing in Matabeleland is clearly a disadvantage, as is his colour in these days of ‘goals’, but with his talent he should be given every possible opportunity in the Zimbabwe A team.

 

Strydom raced to 33 off 21 balls before Mahwire slipped a yorker under his bat, removing his leg and middle stumps – but umpire Kevan Barbour had called no-ball. Strydom celebrated with a skimming four over the covers next ball. His fifty came off 26 balls but, not satisfied with such a slow rate of scoring, he began pumping sixes over the midwicket boundary with greater alacrity. A boundary into the bushes beyond extra cover caused a delay as the ball was lost and had to be replaced, but he had reached 75 by lunch.

 

After the interval Strydom was quickly into his stride again, hitting two successive leg-side sixes off the flighty debutant leg-spinner Marvin Vogel. He reached his century the following over, off 58 balls, with another leg-side six off Vogel, following it with another, his ninth, next ball. All were from the same end and all hit between square leg and midwicket – or the clubhouse and the scorer’s box. Finally a weary stroke off Leon Soma yielded a straight-forward catch to midwicket and he departed for 128. He faced only 78 balls and hit 12 fours and 10 sixes – the 10 sixes equalled the Zimbabwe record in first-class cricket, also held by Eddo Brandes and Gus Mackay.

 

Once Strydom was gone, the bowlers were in less danger and bowled rather more accurately. Opener Siziba was still there, battling his way through the forties. He finally reached his fifty off 172 balls. At the other end he lost debutant Romeo Kasawaya (12) and Keith Dabengwa (9), both lbw to Leon Soma and the latter clearly showing dissent by standing his ground for an age after being given out by umpire Justice Tapfumaneyi. Then, on the stroke of tea, Tawanda Mpariwa was yorked by the jubilant Innocent Chinyoka for 10, leaving Matabeleland at 285 for six.

 

Siziba’s marathon innings finally came to an end shortly after tea, as he sliced a drive against Chinyoka and the catch went straight to backward point. He scored 66 in almost five hours, off 223 balls, and Matabeleland were 296 for seven.

 

Mluleki Nkala began to open up with some of his most majestic strokes but, like several of his team-mates, he benefited from a dropped catch. Two more drops followed in the next few minutes as the Manicaland fielding went from bad to worse. But the last three wickets when they fell went quickly: Kusano was trapped lbw by the hard-working Mahwire for 30, Nkala caught in the slips off Leon Soma for 57 and finally Chris Mpofu yorked by Mahwire without scoring.

 

The innings closed for 390, with the greatly improved Leon Soma taking five wickets with his enthusiastic medium-fast deliveries for 58 runs. Mahwire and Chinyoka took two wickets each, while Prosper Utseya bowled steadily and well but was unlucky not to take any wickets. Extras contributed a disgraceful 60 runs to the total.

 

Seldom can an opening batsman have looked more uncomfortable than did Manyande, sent in to open after a disastrous day behind the stumps. He was beaten on numerous occasions and dropped off a chance straight to first slip, but he hung in there with Darlington Matambanadzo until the close, when Manicaland were 26 without loss.

 

(Article: Copyright © 2004 John Ward)