Lady Chevrons gain India experience as Mayers, Biza shine
Raipur defeat shows the gap in power hitting for an African side on a six-match tour
SHARNE Mayers’ 60 and an all-round performance from Beloved Biza gave Zimbabwe Women positives in Tuesday’s 92-run defeat to India in the third and final T20I in Raipur, in a match that showed how far African women’s cricket still has to go in power hitting.
India made 216/7 and bowled Zimbabwe out for 124/7, and completed a 3-0 series win after winning the first T20I by four wickets and the second by nine wickets with 67 balls to spare.
The scorecard shows where the gap lies. India hit 11 sixes, with Harmanpreet Kaur making 91 not out off 41 balls, including 10 fours and five sixes, and Shafali Verma making 69 off 37, with six fours and five sixes.
Zimbabwe hit four, all from Mayers, who made 60 off 49 balls, with four fours and four sixes, after her unbeaten 43 in the first T20I. India scored at 10.80 an over and Zimbabwe at 6.20.
Zimbabwe’s totals across the series were 114/5, 102/8 and 124/7, all short of the 140 mark head coach Mark Coles has spoken of. Tuesday was the only match in which they scored at more than six an over, with 5.70 in the first and 5.10 in the second.
“The two teams that we’re against at the moment have got girls in the middle that are big, tall, strong girls and hit the ball hard and we just don’t have that at the moment,” Coles said earlier.
“So we need to find someone or something that can change the game and at least go at six or seven an over.”
Zimbabwe’s start made the chase harder. Kelis Ndhlovu fell on the first ball of the innings and Modester Mupachikwa was caught behind at 12/2, then Mayers and Biza added 82 for the third wicket.
Biza made 44 off 50 balls, with five fours, before she was bowled by Nandani Sharma at 122/6. Sharma took three for 18.
Biza also took three for 50 from four overs, with the wickets of Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh and Arundhati Reddy. Nyasha Gwanzura took one for 15, and Nomvelo Sibanda and Tendai Makusha took one wicket each.
Zimbabwe took all seven wickets through fielding, with six catches and a run-out. Control was the issue, though. The bowlers sent down 10 wides, six of them from Kudzai Chigora.
For Zimbabwe, the tour continues to offer exposure against an established side. It moves to Vadodara for three ODIs on October 23, 25 and 28, which count towards the ICC Women’s Championship.
