Jo’Bug Bangla Tigers and the Cape Town Samp Army sealed their berths in the grand final of the Zim Afro T10 tournament which is scheduled for 29 September at the Harare Sports Club at 1600hrs CAT

Qualifier 1 promised plenty of runs, and the players did not disappoint. The Harare Bolts batted first, and it was the captain doing the majority of the heavy lifting.

Dasun Shanaka scored an unbeaten 61 from 24 balls, smashing 7 boundaries and 4 sixes, as the Lahiru Milantha (19), Shehan Jayasuriya (24) and George Munsey (15*) made healthy contributions to push the total to 124/2 in 10 overs.

In response, the Tigers had Mohammad Shahzad leading the charge, as he matched the Bolts’ attacking batting approach shot for shot, and finished with a match-winning 64 not out from 25 deliveries.

Hazratullah Zazai (29) and Sikandar Raza (22) made their presence felt in the run chase as well, as the Tigers won by 7 wickets and romped into the final.

In the Eliminator, NYS Lagos batted first but it was Salman Irshad’s 3-fer along with the Amir Hamza and Rohan Mustafa’s two wicket hauls, that restricted them to 88/8 in their 10 overs. For the Lagos side, Blessing Muzarabani (27) and Joshua Bishop (20) who top scored.

After the innings break, Mustafa played a captain’s knock for the Cape Town Samp Army, scoring an unbeaten 60, while Jack Taylor stayed not out on 29, and guided them through to Qualifier 2 with an 8-wicket win.

Qualifier 2 turned out to be yet another intense affair. The Harare Bolts batted first, but found it tough to get Amir Hamza away, as he picked three quick wickets. George Munsey (17), Jimmy Neesham (17) and Shehan Jayasuriya (39) then helped them get to 98/6 in their 10 overs.

The Samp Army made the chase look relatively easy as Brian Bennett teed off from the get go and scored a brisk 46 from 18 deliveries, before Dawid Malan (19) and Jack Taylor (29) put the seal on the win with more than two and a half overs to spare, and 9 wickets in hand.

Brief Scores

Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers – 125/3 in 9 overs (M Shahzad – 64*, H Zazai – 29, R Gleeson – 1/20, Arinesto Vezha – 1/11) won by 7 wickets against Harare Bolts – 124/2 in 10 overs (D Shanaka – 61*, S Jayasuriya – 24, S Raza – 1/18, George Linde – 1/16)

Cape Town Samp Army – 93/2 in 6.3 overs (R Mustafa – 60*, J Taylor – 29*, B Fernando – 2/23) won by 8 wickets against NYS Lagos – 88/8 in 10 overs (B Muzarabani – 27, J Bishop – 20, S Irshad – 3/11, R Mustafa – 2/11)

Cape Town Samp Army – 99/1 in 7.2 overs (B Bennett – 46, Jack Taylor 29*, Brandon Mavuta – 1/23) won by 9 wickets against Harare Bolts – 98/6 in 10 overs (S Jayasuriya – 39, G Munsey – 17, A Hamza – 3/9, R Mustafa – 1/8)

The second season of the Zim Afro T10 is heading for the home stretch with knockout stages around the corner.

On the final day of the league stage, there was a lot of entertaining cricket on display with the Cape Town Samp Army, NYS Lagos and the Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers putting in clinical performances.

Up next, in Qualifier 1, the Harare Bolts will play the Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers, and in the Eliminator, the NYS Lagos come up against the Cape Town Samp Army.

The winner of the Qualifier 1 will go straight through to the final while the runner-up will play the winners of the Eliminator, for a berth in the summit clash on Sunday.

In the opening game of the day, David Warner finally came good for the Bulawayo Brave Jaguars scoring a quickfire 47.

He was supported by the big hitting Kobe Herft, who added 27, as the Jaguars posted 103/7 in their 10 overs. For the Samp Army, Salman Irshad was again amongst the wickets with figures of 2/15.

In response, Dawid Malan batted brilliantly, scoring a free flowing unbeaten 48, while Jack Taylor stayed not out with 28, as they rounded off a comfortable 8-wicket win with an over and half to go.

After that, the NYS Lagos were in action and they finished their campaign in the league stage with a big win. Avishka Fernando scored 46 and Rassie van der Dussen added 23 before being dismissed by a brilliant catch on the boundary, as the NYS Lagos posted 124/7.

The Durban Wolves, who were playing for pride, could not get going as the Lagos bowlers kept them in check and picked wickets at regular intervals.

Innocent Kaia top scored with 19 for the Wolves, while Blessing Muzarabani, Bodugum Akhilesh Reddy, and Joshua Bishop, all took 2 wickets each, to seal a 53-run win for the NYS Lagos.

In the final league stage game of the tournament, the Harare Bolts batted first against the Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers. Lahiru Milantha got them off to a flyer with a quick 32, while George Munsey added 20, Dasun Shanaka got 24, and Sabbir Rahman smashed 34 off 12 balls, to take to score to 120/4 in 10 overs.

In response, the Tigers batted superbly as captain Sikandar Raza led the charge with a game changing 38 from 10 deliveries. Hazratullah Zazai added an important 22 and Tashinga Musekiwa’s 18 helped seal the deal for the Tigers, who won by 4 wickets.

Brief Scores

Cape Town Samp Army 104/2 in 8.3 overs (D Malan 48*, J Taylor 28*, Victor Chirwa – 1/9, C Brathwaite – 0/19) won by 8 wickets against Bulawayo Brave Jaguars – 103/7 in 10 overs (David Warner – 47, K Herft – 27, S Irshad – 2/15, Qais Ahmed – 2/22)

NYS Lagos – 124/7 in 10 overs (A Fernando – 46, R van der Dussen – 23, Raveen de Silva – 2/22, D Zadran – 1/19) won by 53 runs against Durban Wolves – 71/7 in 10 overs (Innocent Kaia – 19*, Mark Chapman – 12, J Bishop – 2/10, B Muzarabani – 2/12)

Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers – 121/6 in 10 overs (S Raza – 38, H Zazai – 22, Aftab Alam – 1/16, Dasun Shanaka – 1/18) won by 4 wickets against Harare Bolts – 120/4 in 10 overs (Sabbir Rahman – 34, Lahiru Milantha – 32, Luke Wood – 2/11, Tinashe Muchawaya – 1/24)

George Munsey put on an absolute masterclass at the Harare Sports Club on Day 6 of the second season of the Zim Afro T10, as he scored the first century ever in the history of the competition which helped the Harare Bolts post a record total, and in the process knocked out the Durban Wolves.

After that the Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers were clinical against the Bulawayo Brave Jaguars, and the NYS Lagos also put in a fine all-round performance to pick up an important win against the Cape Town Samp Army.

Batting first, the Harare Bolts made good use of the conditions, and started brightly. Lahiru Milantha (13) and Janishka Perera (24) scored freely in the initial overs, before George Munsey decided to take charge.

The Scotsman, who is well known for his ability to hit a long ball, put on a masterclass in attacking, as he scored a 38-ball 100, and remained unbeaten. Munsey smashed 10 maximums and six boundaries, as the Bolts posted a record 173/2 in 10 overs.

In response, the Wolves made a solid start as well as Sharjeel Khan (25) and Will Smeed (16) attacked from the get-go. Colin Munro added a quickfire 32, after which the Bolts’ bowling attack tightened the screws and closed out a comfortable 54-run win, with Richard Gleeson finishing as the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/2.

In the second game of the day, there were more runs of course, as the Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers’ top order put in a remarkable performance.

The duo of Hazratullah Zazai (49*) and captain Sikandar Raza (51*) played freely, and ensured the Bulawayo Brave Jaguars’ bowlers would not have much to cheer about.

The two of them stitched together a fantastic unbeaten 108-run stand for the third wicket, which propelled the score to 128/2. In response the David Warner led side, found it hard to build momentum.

Tinashe Muchawaya had Warner’s number yet again, and George Linde picked three more wickets to keep the Jaguars in check. Carlos Brathwaite top scored for the Jaguars with 18 runs, as they were restricted to 91/9 in their 10 overs, giving the Tigers a resounding 37-run win.

The runs continued to flow in the final game of the day, as the NYS Lagos took first strike and openers Rassie van der Dussen (51) and Avishka Fernando (66) played brilliantly.

The openers used all their experience and attacked the right deliveries, putting on an opening partnership of 122. The NYS Lagos finished with 133/2 in their 10 overs.

In response, the Cape Town Samp Army started brightly as Brian Bennett scored a fast paced 40. After that Jack Taylor added 37 more, but the likes of Oshane Thomas bowled brilliantly and restricted the big hitters. Eventually, NYS Lagos came away with a 42-run win on the day, and secured qualification for the next round.

Brief Scores:

Harare Bolts – 173/2 in 10 overs (G Munsey – 100*, J Perera – 24, D Zadran – 2/36, T Maposa – 0/18) won by 54 runs against Durban Wolves – 119/6 in 10 overs (C Munro – 32, Sharjeel Khan – 25, R Gleeson – 2/2, D Shanaka – 1/12)

Jo’Burg Bangla Tigers – 128/2 in 10 overs (S Raza – 51*, H Zazai – 49*, A Dananjaya – 1/23, R Ngarava – 1/31) won by 37 runs against the Bulawayo Brave Jaguars – 91/9 in 10 overs (C Brathwaite – 18, Nick Hobson – 15, G Linde – 3/9, K Janat – 2/14)

NYS Lagos – 148/2 in 10 overs (Avishka Fernando – 66, Rassie van der Dussen – 51, Salman Irshad – 2/21) won by 42 runs against Cape Town Samp Army – 106/3 in 10 overs (B Bennett – 40, J Taylor – 37, Oshane Thomas – 2/27, Thisara Perera – 1/21)