USA Women were highly competitive for the majority of the match, but self-inflicted wounds at critical moments resulted in Zimbabwe securing a six-wicket win with an over to spare chasing a target of 125 in Abu Dhabi on Sunday night. 

Photo credit: Peter Della Penna

By Peter Della Penna in Abu Dhabi (Twitter/X @PeterDellaPenna)
 
USA Women missed a golden opportunity to score a win over Full Member opposition as the settled on a total of 124 for 4 after being sent in to bat first by Zimbabwe before the African side chased the target with an over to spare for a six-wicket margin at Tolerance Oval on Sunday night. USA was well-positioned at 85 for 2 with six overs remaining, but racked up 16 dot balls during the final 36 deliveries (44%) in spite of having eight wickets in hand. The weak finish, combined with some poor fielding, allowed Zimbabwe to achieve what appeared to be a comfortable victory margin in the end in spite of the fact that USA had been competitive throughout the contest. 
 
“There were ups and downs,” USA Women’s captain Sindhu Sriharsha said after the game. “We definitely were in the game for a longer period of time. We kept pulling it tight to take it as deep as possible. We did err in a few of our field placements and our bowling, not bowling to the field or it was not set right. It’s something we have to keep working on. I do believe that we are making a lot of progress from what we have done previously to what we are today.” 
 
“The two areas of concern currently is our Powerplay in the first six overs and the last six overs. I think that’s where we’re kind of erring a little bit. We’re doing extremely well in the middle overs and are able to build partnerships. It’s about knowing and a little bit of game awareness. Players and batters coming in have to understand that yes, they are power hitters, but if there is a senior out there who has batted a little bit longer, just bring them back on strike.” 
 

USA got off to a slow start, crawling to 8 for 1 after three overs with Gargi Bhogle dismissed for 2, bowled trying to play a release shot down the ground against the spin of Lindokuhle Mabhera. After beginning with 5 off 13 balls, Disha Dhingra started to pick up the pace in partnership with Anika Kolan as the pair scored four boundaries off the next three overs to help USA end the Powerplay at 34 for 1. Dhingra fell in the ninth for 22, driving left-arm pacer Nomvelo Sibanda to mid-off where a sharp catch was taken by Audrey Mazvishaya reaching high above her head to make it 43 for 1. 
 
Kolan and Sriharsha then steered USA through the majority of the innings with a 49-run partnership. Sriharsha made the most of an early life on 3 in the 10^th over when a sweep against Loreen Tshuma was spilled at square leg by Precious Marange crouching at knee height. Sriharsha rubbed salt into the wound taking on Marange in the 13^th, coming down the track to clear mid-on before a sweep split deep midwicket and deep square leg for back-to-back boundaries as part of a 12-run over, USA’s best of the match, to take the score to 77 for 2 after 13. Sriharsha swept another boundary behind square leg off Tshuma in the 14^th and ended the over on 27 off 21 balls. But the USA captain wound up off strike for all but six deliveries across the next four overs – including not facing a single ball in both the 15^th and 18^th overs – as USA sputtered toward the end of the innings. 
 
Kolan fell on the first ball of the 16^th for 37 as an attempted charge down the track was countered cleverly by Mabhera, who dragged her length back resulting in a miscued edge that sailed to short third for a diving catch by Sibanda to make it 92 for 3. Frozen off strike for 75% of the late overs sequence, Sriharsha fell for 32 off 28 balls on the first delivery of the 19^th, one of four dot balls in the over, as a short ball from Mazvishaya resulted in a top-edge that fluttered safely back to the bowler to make it 111 for 4. 
 
A boundary from Isani Vaghela off the final ball of the innings lifted USA’s spirits heading into the break as the teenage allrounder finished on 19 not out off 18 balls while Geetika Kodali ended on 5 not out off 4 balls. 
 
Mabhera finished with 2 for 22 including a wicket-maiden in the third for Zimbabwe’s best figures on the night. Sibanda claimed 1 for 11 in two while Mazvishaya ended with 1 for 21 in three. 
 
Whereas USA only had two double-digit overs in their entire innings, Zimbabwe had two in their first five overs – and six overall in their 19-over chase – to race away to 43 for 1 in five overs. The brief hiccup in that sequence was the loss of Sharne Mayers, out for 5 driving Kodali to Dhingra at mid-off in the first over. But from there USA struggled to contain Zimbabwe’s aggressive approach. 
 
USA’s fielding blunders only served to make matters worse, none more so than a botched runout chance off the first ball of the fourth over. With the score at 23 for 1 and Aditi Chudasama bowling her second over of new-ball offspin, Modester Mupachikwa flicked a full delivery toward Vaghela at midwicket, who put in a superb diving stop to cut off a would be single. Chipo Tiripano had already set off from the non-striker’s end expecting the ball to get by and wound up together with Mupachikwa at the striker’s end. Vaghela got to her feet but rushed trying to gather the ball, fumbling it repeatedly. 
 
However, Vaghela still gathered the ball in time and rather than firing a panicked overhand throw at the stumps, had the presence of mind to underhand it gently from 10 yards away to Chudasama. But with her back turned to the two batters and not fully aware of how far out Tiripano still was from getting back, Chudasama tried to catch the ball and take the bails off all in one motion and wound up fumbling the collection while taking the bails off without ball in hand. It allowed Tiripano, who was on 6 at the time, to get back safely at the non-striker’s end. Tiripano punished USA badly in the fifth over, cutting Vaghela past backward point three times in four balls for a trio of boundaries as part of a 15-run over. 
 
Ritu Singh started to shift momentum back in USA’s direction with a wicket-maiden in the sixth, getting Mupachikwa to slice a catch to Aras diving forward at short third for 11 making it 43 for 2 before pinning down Josephine Nkomo off the last four balls of the over. Singh and Suhani Thadani combined to concede just five runs off the next two overs as well before pressure was released with a 10-run over off Thadani in the ninth that began with a boundary off a misfield at backward point and also included a no ball. 
 
The partnership finally ended for 44 when Tiripano fell for 38, unable to keep out a yorker sent down by Jessica Willathgamuwa making it 87 for 3 in the 13^th. Once again, USA tightened the screws in the field, conceding just 11 runs off the next three overs to raise the equation for Zimbabwe to back above a run a ball as the score sat at 98 for 3 in 16. But Thadani was once again let down by the fielding, with another boundary coming off a misfield at square leg as part of two fours by Nkomo during a 12-run over that eased any pressure on Zimbabwe.
 
Nkomo finally fell for a joint top-score of 38 at a run a ball, miscuing a drive off Chudasama to Bhogle at extra cover to make it 112 for 4. Zimbabwe needed 11 off 12 balls, but only needed half the remaining deliveries to achieve it as new batter Pellagia Mujaji drove Kodali over extra cover for a boundary off the third ball, then heaved her again through midwicket for another four off the final ball of the 19^th to clinch the match. Mujaji ended 10 not out off 4 balls while Kelis Ndhlovu finished unbeaten on 10 off 16. 
 
Singh ended with USA’s best figures on the night returning 1 for 10 in three including a wicket-maiden. Aras was USA’s most economical conceding 0 for 7 off three. Chudasama returned 1 for 15 in three overs. Willathgamuwa ended with 1 for 25 in three overs while Kodali finished with 1 for 27 in three. 
 
USA now has a training day scheduled for Monday before returning to action on Tuesday afternoon against Ireland in a match scheduled for 3 pm local time at Mohan’s Oval on the nursery grounds outside Zayed Cricket Stadium.