Opting to bowl first, Zimbabwe restricted Nepal to 290 for the loss of eight wickets in 50 overs and then chased down the target in 44.1 overs with eight wickets in hand.
Sean Williams smashed the fastest century by a Zimbabwean in an ODI match as the host team triumphed over Nepal with a resounding eight-wicket victory in the first match of the World Cup qualifiers in 2023 at the Harare Sports Club on Sunday. Williams achieved his century in just 70 balls, surpassing the previous record held by Brendan Taylor, who reached a hundred in 79 deliveries.
Zimbabwe chose to bowl first and restricted Nepal to a total of 290 runs for the loss of eight wickets in 50 overs. Zimbabwe then successfully chased down the target, reaching it in 44.1 overs with eight wickets remaining.
Nepal had a strong start to their innings with openers Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh putting together an excellent partnership of 171 runs. Bhurtel fell agonizingly short of a century, departing for an impressive 99 runs off 95 balls. His innings included 13 boundaries and two sixes. Wicketkeeper-batsman Sheikh also contributed with a half-century, scoring 66 runs off 100 balls with seven fours. However, Zimbabwe’s Richard Ngarava took four wickets and broke the opening partnership, with Kushal Malla providing the finishing touches with a quickfire 41 runs off 42 balls.
In response, Zimbabwe got off to a shaky start, losing opener Joylord Gumbie early. However, captain Ervine played a captain’s innings, remaining unbeaten on 121 runs off 128 balls. He hit 15 boundaries and a six on his way to reaching the century mark. Williams provided excellent support to Ervine, also remaining unbeaten on 102 runs off 70 balls, including 13 fours and a six. The duo built an unbeaten partnership of 164 runs off 125 balls for the third wicket, propelling Zimbabwe to a winning start in the qualifiers.
“We didn’t start really well, dropping a couple of catches cost us, but credit to the guys for bouncing back. We thought that a target of 280-290 would be achievable because the pitch looked good. We expected a bit more movement early on, but the pitch played really well today. The conditions were great, and their openers batted really well, but we missed our chances early on. Credit to them, they put us under pressure at the start of their innings. During the chase, we focused on breaking it down into small parts, concentrating on the gaps and the bowlers’ strategies,” said Zimbabwe captain Ervine after the match.
With this win, Zimbabwe will aim to secure a spot in the Super 6 and will face The Netherlands next on Tuesday. On the same day, Nepal will regroup and face the United States of America (USA) in their next match.
The action continues on Monday, with Sri Lanka facing the United Arab Emirates and Ireland taking on Oman in Group B matches at Bulawayo.
Only two out of the ten teams participating in the three-week qualifiers will qualify for the World Cup, which will be held in India in October and November.
Brief Scores: Nepal 290/8 in 50 Overs (Kushal Bhurtel 99, Aasif Sheikh 66, Ngarava 4/43) lost to Zimbabwe 291/2 in 44.1 Overs (Craig Ervine 121 no, Sean Williams 102 no) by eight wickets.
Player of the Match: Craig Ervine
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