OWN CORRESPONDENT, Bulawayo | Friday 6.45pm.
ENGLAND muddled their way to a one wicket victory over Zimbabwe on Friday to take a 2-0 the four-match series.
The tourists almost threw away a winning position at the Queen’s Sports Club when, with just 12 runs needed for victory and five wickets in hand, they lost four batsmen for five runs. Only an edged two through the slips from number 11 Alan Mullally saw them home.
The England victory was built around a stirring all-round performance from Craig White. The man-of-the-match added a studied 26 at a crucial time for England to go with his five wickets after the Zimbabweans, put into bat on an overcast day, were all out for 131.
England got their run chase off to a terrible start, losing both openers with just six runs on the board.
Nick Knight was the first to go, although he looked extremely unhappy to be given out caught behind off Heath Streak.
Streak then trapped Nasser Hussain leg-before on the front foot and when Graeme Hick went with the score on 30, getting a top edge to an attempted pull shot, Streak had his third wicket and Zimbabwe were well and truly back in the game.
With both Darren Maddy and Vikram Solanki going when looking set, England were down to their all-rounders with only 73 runs on the board, but White and Mark Ealham took their side to within 12 runs of victory with a partnership of 47.
When White fell for 26 cutting Olonga to point, it looked as though he had seen England to the brink of victory, but when Read went without scoring and Ealham followed him for a well-made 32 just two balls later, England still needed seven runs to win with just two wickets in hand.
Earlier, White took a career best five for 21 as Zimbabwe struggled from the start. White tore the heart out of the home side’s top and middle order, bowling with a combination of pace and controlled movement off the seam.
White got rid of two key Zimbabwean batsmen, Neil Johnson and Stuart Carlisle, both of them when they looked set to go on and build a potentially match-winning innings. After that, it was a sorry tale for Zimbabwe as they slumped to 102 for eight with only Murray Goodwin managing to make it into double figures. — Reuters