Zimbabwe’s spinners led the touring side to 26-run victory over the West Indies in a low-scoring Twenty20 international at Queen’s Park Oval on Sunday.
Zimbabwe survived a batting collapse at the top of the order to rally to 105 all out off 19.5 overs in the one-off match.
Opener Hamilton Masakadza was the top scorer with 44, while Elton Chigumbura contributed 34 off 19 deliveries as Zimbabwe made their total more respectable with 29 runs off the last two overs.
Left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn took a wicket with the first ball of the match and returned the remarkable figures of four wickets for just six runs off four overs, including two maidens.
Medium pacer Darren Sammy claimed 5-26, the best return by a West Indian in this format of the game.
But despite Zimbabwe’s modest total, the West Indies’ run chase never got off the ground in the face of some accurate, tight bowling from Zimbabwe’s slow bowlers.
The hosts, in their first match under new coach Ottis Gibson, were restricted to 79-7, their lowest ever total at this level. Captain Denesh Ramdin top-scored for the West Indies with an unbeaten 23.
His opposite number, off-spinner Prosper Utseya, claimed 1-12 off his four overs while Ray Price (1-18) also proved troublesome with the new ball.
The inexperienced duo of Graeme Cremer (3-11) and Greg Lamb (2-14) kept the pressure on. Leg-spinner Cremer earned the man-of-the-match award while 28-year-old Lamb completed a memorable debut.
The two teams begin a five-match one-day series in Guyana next Thursday. — Sapa-AP