1st ODI: Zimbabwe v South Africa at Bulawayo, 23 Sep 2001 John Ward |
Pre-game:
South Africa innings: Zimbabwe innings: |
It was an adequate reflection of excellent batting and an incompetent Zimbabwean performance at the bowling crease - 15 wides and 7 no-balls also tell their story - and the match as a contest was over very early on.
South Africa won the toss and decided to bat on a hot sunny day. A large crowd was present from the start, while the pitch, although flat, had little grass and could crumble a little later in the day.
After the Test series, Zimbabwe replaced Stuart Carlisle and Raymond Price with Craig Wishart and Mluleki Nkala, and bat down to number eleven; all the team have first-class centuries to their credit except, paradoxically, opener Dion Ebrahim.
South Africa made just one change, with one-day specialist Jonty Rhodes replacing Boeta Dippenaar.
Once again Zimbabwe were let down by undisciplined bowling, especially by Travis Friend, who conceded 47 runs in his opening spell of four overs.
Gary Kirsten began the slaughter with cuts for four off Friend's first two deliveries, then Gibbs took him apart, including a remarkable front-foot six over backward point.
Once more Zimbabwe's selectors seemed to have made their choices with little appreciation of the virtues for accuracy. Heath Streak also failed to threaten the batsmen or keep the score down, and the hundred came up in only the 10th over.
Gibbs reached his fifty off 30 balls, and it took leg-spinner Paul Strang to exercise some sort of control. Replays showed he might have been unlucky not to win an lbw appeal against Kirsten when the latter was on 47, just before he ran to his fifty off 41 balls, but the umpire had no hesitation later when Kirsten had 66 and was struck in front of the stumps attempting a sweep. South Africa were 153 for one in the 19th over.
The slower bowlers, helped by additional boundary fielders, made South Africa work harder for their runs, but Gibbs' century still came off 84 balls, South Africa's fastest in one-day cricket.
Streak returned for the 36th over and claimed Gibbs lbw for 125, rather controversially as he was well forward and was perhaps hit outside the line of off stump; 244 for two.
The coming of Rhodes as usual led to superb running between wickets with Jacques Kallis, and at one stage he reverse-swept Grant Flower for six. The score was by now past 300; 313 was the previous highest total against Zimbabwe and 328 the highest by South Africa in one-day internationals.
Kallis on 83 was caught by Andy Flower driving at Friend to be dismissed for the first time on tour.
Rhodes reached fifty off 37 balls, and South Africa finished with the incredible total of 363 for three wickets (Rhodes 54, Lance Klusener 10).
After the Test series, Zimbabwe replaced Stuart Carlisle and Raymond Price with Craig Wishart and Mluleki Nkala, and bat down to number eleven; all the team have first-class centuries to their credit except, paradoxically, opener Dion Ebrahim. South Africa made just one change, with one-day specialist Jonty Rhodes replacing Boeta Dippenaar.
The teams were as follows:
Zimbabwe: Alistair Campbell, Dion Ebrahim, Hamilton Masakadza, Craig Wishart, +Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Guy Whittall, *Heath Streak, Mluleki Nkala, Paul Strang, Travis Friend.
South Africa: Herschelle Gibbs, Gary Kirsten, Jacques Kallis, Neil McKenzie, Jonty Rhodes, Lance Klusener, +Mark Boucher, *Shaun Pollock, Claude Henderson, Makhaya Ntini, Andre Nel.
© CricInfo
Date-stamped : 23 Sep2001 - 18:38