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MOUNTAINEERS cruised to a crushing 10-wicket victory over Rhinos at Harare Sports Club to bring their Logan Cup defence back on track within two days. The match had appeared evenly balanced overnight, but a batting collapse by Rhinos led to their following on and being bowled out a second time to hand the reigning champions their first victory in three attempts this season.

Victor Nyauchi was the man who shattered the Rhinos first innings with four wickets for only 27 runs and put them on the slippery slope towards a humiliating two-day defeat, while Donald Tiripano and William Mashinge bowled out Rhinos the second time.

The day began with Rhinos on 59 for two wickets in their first innings in reply to Mountaineers’ total of 236 — Bothwell Chapungu had 21 and PJ Moor seven.

It was an overcast and rather windy morning at Harare Sports Club as play started, and the bowlers were able to get a lot of early movement.

Moor could not add to his overnight score, as Nyauchi lured him into a hesitant stroke outside the off stump and he was caught at the wicket with the score on 61.

Nyasha Mayavo threw his wicket away to the second ball he faced as, failing to play himself in, he went for a big leg-side hit off Nyauchi and skied a catch to the fielder at deep square leg.

Worse was to follow, as Chapungu (27) lashed recklessly at a ball from William Mashinge outside the off stump and was easily caught at the wicket.

At 61 for five, Rhinos had in the space of five balls handed control of the match right into the hands of the jubilant Mountaineers, and the movement the bowlers got in the air did not excuse the strokes attempted.

Moor later said that he thought the overcast sky and the wind was the reason for the unusual degree of swing the bowlers obtained, coupled with the fact that their admirable accuracy gave the Rhinos batsmen no respite.

Unfortunately, his players had little idea how to play the moving ball and many poor strokes were attempted when clear thinking and sound techniques were needed.

Tendai Chisoro and Neville Madziva were now batting together trying to pick up the pieces from the wreckage of the innings.

They handled the crisis well for a few overs, defending sensibly and attacking the loose balls, although Chisoro narrowly escaped being run out when a quick throw-in missed the stumps with him well out of his crease.

Then, at 80, Mashinge had Madziva groping at a ball outside his off stump and edging a catch to the keeper, the sixth wicket down.

Chisoro had looked more capable than any other batsman, yet he still had only nine runs when he miscued a stroke off Nyauchi and was caught at mid-off with the score still on 80.

Tiripano now replaced Mashinge and finished off the innings with three wickets in four balls: Brandon Mavuta patted a tame catch to backward point, Carl Mumba edged his second ball into the slips and the last man Mike Chinouya lost his leg stump first ball.

A bad collapse had become a total catastrophe as the last five wickets had fallen in 15 balls without a further run being scored.

In a little over an hour, eight wickets had gone down for just 21 runs, and not a single boundary had been struck.

This amazing sequence of events gave Mountaineers a totally unexpected option of enforcing the follow-on, having a lead of 156, and they decided to do so.

Besides Nyauchi’s four wickets, Tiripano had three and Mashinge two.

Tiripano, having finished the job, was given the first over when Rhinos went in again, although he was unable to complete the hat-trick.

Scores
Mountaineers – 236 and 16-0 in 2 overs (Innocent Kaia 10*, Shingi Masakadza 6*)

Rhinos – 80 and (following on) 171 all out in 44.5 overs (Tarisai Musakanda 52, Kyle Jarvis 23, Neville Madziva 22; William Mashinge 5/38, Donald Tiripano 4/42, Victor Nyauchi 1/46) — zimcricket.