Australia 356 for 6 (Head 112, Connolly 78, Marsh 53, Evans 3-86) beat Zimbabwe 272 (Raza 45) by 84 runs
Though Zimbabwe’s batting depth is a concern, they will also point the finger at isolated errors that have proved costly. In this match, they will rue a chance that came with the match’s opening ball. Marsh drove Blessing Muzarabani to Wessly Madhevere at backward point but he could not hold on to a tough chance.
It was all Australia from there with Zimbabwe’s senior seamers unable to apply consistent pressure. Murazabani and Brad Evans bowled four and five overs respectively upfront, by which time Australia had already motored to 62 in eight overs. They struck nine fours and two sixes in that time in what was a sign of things to come. The innings ended with 27 fours and 12 sixes.
Marsh was the more watchful of the opening pair and was on 27 off 33 at the end of the powerplay while Head had smashed 48 off the 27 balls he faced. His fifty came when Raza brought himself on, and somewhat riskily as Head drove at Raza’s second ball but got a top-edge. With no slip in place, the ball raced away for his eighth four. Head and Marsh brought up Australia’s hundred – and just their second century opening stand against Zimbabwe in ODIs – in the 13th over, when Head whipped Newman Nyamhuri through mid-on.
The introduction of Wellington Masakadza stemmed the tide slightly, but Marsh brought up his fifty off 52 balls with a six against the left-arm spinner. However, Masakadza had the last word when, in his next over, he spun one past Marsh’s outside edge and bowled him to give Zimbabwe their first wicket. The dismissal had no impact on the scoring rate, though, as Head continued aggressively and reached his hundred on the stroke of the innings’ halfway mark off 75 balls. It was the fastest century by an Australian against Zimbabwe, and Head’s first hundred in any format since the final Ashes Test in January.
Head eventually got one wrong when he was too early on a shot against a slower Madhevere delivery and skied into the off side. Zimbabwe conceded 39 runs off the next six overs and were rewarded when Josh Inglis gifted Masakadza a return catch off a delivery which held in the surface. The next three overs brought only eight runs as Zimbabwe continued to pull Australia back.
While Alex Carey struggled to get going, Connolly reached a run-a-ball fifty to continue an impressive run of form. Australia were on 255 for 3 after 40 overs and set for a big finish. Connolly sent Masakadza down the ground for six and drove Raza off the back foot for another, but Carey sliced an Evans slower ball to Ben Curran at backward point to depart for a 30-ball 20.
Evans initially looked like the major beneficiary of the last passage of play as Connolly top-edged a short ball and Brendan Taylor took a good catch. He had Matt Renshaw dropped at short fine leg then caught at deep square leg off successive balls. But his final over was smacked for 24 runs and Evans will want to consider whether back-of-a-length was the right idea as Peake, on 18 at the start of the over, more than doubled his score by the end of it.
Set 357 to win, the odds were always against Zimbabwe. They started tentatively against Australia’s new combination of Hazlewood and Stanlake – both brought into the XI for this match – but there were also some signs of aggression.
Brian Bennett accepted the invitation to drive up on the up when Hazlewood offered him width. Australia thought they had Curran caught at mid-off but Head’s fingers were not under the ball. Curran never got properly comfortable as he top-edged Hazlewood and then Nathan Ellis found his outside edge but the seamers were denied an early breakthrough.
Australia’s biggest concern was when Stanlake could not complete his fifth over just outside the powerplay. He bowled two legitimate deliveries in the over before leaving the field clutching his side and forcing Marsh to run through a variety of spin options.
Renshaw was given the ball and he proved to be in possession of a golden arm. He saw Bennett shaping up for the reverse sweep, bowled full and straight and took out the middle stump. In his next over, Curran tried to slog sweep Renshaw and the ball snuck under the bat and bowled him. By then the required run-rate was already at 8.5 to the over and Zimbabwe seemed content to run their own race.
Kaia and Taylor shared a 55-run third-wicket stand before the former became Zampa’s 200th wicket in the format, bowled by a googly that spun between bat and pad. Taylor and Craig Ervine put on a 44-run stand and had bedded in nicely before Taylor top-edged Peake to deep backward square to give him a maiden international wicket.
Ervine also couldn’t kick on when he reverse-swept Zampa to short third and Evans holed out to deep midwicket. The rest was academic as Madhevere had some fun for a 13-ball 26 but then became Hazlewood’s first victim, given out lbw. Hazlewood bowled Nyamhuri for a second in the over. Raza and Muzarababi made sure Connolly was among the wickets as Zimbabwe were bowled out in the penultimate over with plenty to think about.
Firdose Moonda is Cricinfo’s senior correspondent for Africa and women’s cricket