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Zimbabwe will visit South Africa in October for three ODIs and two Twenty20 matches. Here's the schedule:

8 October 2010          1st T20 International           OUTsurance Oval, Bloemfontein 
10 October 2010         2nd T20 International           De Beers Diamond Oval, Kimberley 
15 October 2010         1st ODI                         OUTsurance Oval, Bloemfontein 
17 October 2010         2nd ODI                         Senwes Park, Potchefstroom 
22 October 2010         3rd ODI                         Willowmoore Park, Benoni

So far this series, there's been one simple rule: bat second, win the match. With Sri Lanka winning the toss and opting to field this morning, the pressure was immediately on Zimbabwe to be the exception to that rule - but setting a target has never been something that this side has looked overly comfortable with, and so it proved this morning. The innings got off to a bad start with the early departures of dynamic duo Hamilton Masakadza (4) and Brendan Taylor (19), while Craig Ervine (9) was run out before really getting a chance to settle. The fourth-wicket pairing of Tatenda Taibu (71) and Greg Lamb (37) finally managed to build a reasonable partnership, adding 90 before Taibu departed, but if there was any hope that the big hitters of the middle order, Chigumbura and Coventry, would arrive like the cavalry to save Zimbabwe's innings, it was misplaced as they too failed to make much of an impact. It didn't help that Zimbabwe waited until after their recognised batsmen had departed to call the batting powerplay, surely a tactical error on Chigumbura's part. The wickets continued to fall cheaply through the lower order, too, as Sri Lanka turned the tables and did to Zimbabwe what Zim had done to them two days earlier and bowled them out for a decidedly sub-par 199. Dilhara Fernando led the Sri Lankan bowling figures with 3/36, while Ajantha Mendis and Jeevan Mendis chipped in with a pair apiece.

While Zimbabwe's innings was slow and laboured, though, Sri Lanka had no such problem - it had been expected before the match that the pitch would become more batsman-friendly as the day went on, and the opening pair of Upul Tharanga and Tillakaratne Dilshan proved that prediction true. They looked set to see out the innings on their own and were racing along at over six an over for most of their innings before an unfortunate mixup in the 26th over led to the run-out of Tharanga for 72. That brought Dinesh Chamdinal to the crease with the score on 160/1, 40 short of the target, and he and Dilshan made short work of knocking those runs off, reaching the target in the 35th over & with Dilshan claiming his ton in the previous over. Zimbabwe's bowlers ended the match without a wicket between them - Greg Lamb was the most economical, conceding 24 runs from his six overs, but nothing really there to write home about.

No fairytale ending to the series for Zimbabwe, then, but we can still hold our heads high after some sparkling performances in the group stage. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 199 (49 overs; Taibu 71, Fernando 3/36), Sri Lanka 203/1 (34.4 overs; Dilshan 108*, Lamb 0/24). Sri Lanka win by 8 wickets.

Before today, it had been seven years since Zimbabwe last beat Sri Lanka, but Zim finally broke that losing streak with another convincing win at Harare Sports Club on Monday. It's perhaps the biggest indicator of how well Zimbabwe have performed in this series that, ahead of the match, many were seeing Zimbabwe as favourites - a status that wasn't harmed by Zimbabwe winning the toss and opting to field. So far in this series, the winner has always been the team batting second, and that record continued.

It initially didn't look that way, though, as Sri Lanka got off to their best start of the series as openers Upul Tharanga (69) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (78) fired Sri Lanka to 122 before the first wicket fell. Their blazing start was partly down to Zimbabwe experimenting with a seam attack that wasn't really firing too well - Chamu Chibhabha (0/40) and Elton Chigumbura (0/32) both took four overs each and got hammered for their trouble - but with the first wicket down, the spinners arrived on the scene and the process of strangling the opposition began, and with it frustration set in amongst the Sri Lankans that proved to be their undoing. From 122/1, the rest of the visitors' batting lineup managed to add only another 114 between them as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 236 with 13 balls to spare. Chris Mpofu (2/32), Graeme Cremer (2/33) and Prosper Utseya (2/41) took two apiece, while some top-class 'keeping by Tatenda Taibu contributed a further two wickets, and from a strong position Sri Lanka were suddenly looking to be the team in trouble.

Come their chance to reply, Zimbabwe remained the dependable batting side that they've been in all their 50-over matches this season. Hamilton Masakadza, who just a few days ago celebrate his marriage, had a rare off day, managing just 3 before holing out. But Brendan Taylor (119*) and Chamu Chibhabha (58) set the tone for Zimbabwe's chase with a steady, unhurried partnership of 134 for the second wicket before Chibhabha was trapped leg-before. That brought Tatenda Taibu (42*) to the crease, who together with Taylor completed the chase with the minimum of fuss. That left Zimbabwe sitting pretty at the top of the tournament table with three wins from four matches, a position that just a few weeks ago most Zim fans would have discounted as impossible. The two sides now meet again in the series final on Wednesday - Zimbabwe have never before won a tri-series that featured only Full Member sides, but with the way they've been performing so far, who would rule out the possibility that Zim's time is about to come? Full scorecard below the cut.
Sri Lanka 236 (47.5 overs; Dilshan 78, Mpofu 2/32), Zimbabwe 240/2 (47.5 overs; Taylor 119*, Dilshan 1/35). Zimbabwe win by 8 wickets.

The tri-series has moved to Harare for the second round of matches, the first of which was round two of Zimbabwe v India, with India confident ahead of the match of being able to take revenge for the drubbing they received in the tournament opener. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, have a far better recent record at Fortress HSC than they've had at Queen's, giving them a bit of a psychological advantage going into the match. Zimbabwe won the toss and opted to field, and while openers Dinesh Karthik (33) and Murali Vijay (21) put on 58 for the first wicket, it was all Zimbabwe's innings from there on. Led by an impressively-economical spell from Andy Blignaut (22/1 from his 10 overs), Zim's bowlers choked off the supply of runs for the Indians and took regular wickets throughout the innings. The only real bright spot for the visitors was Ravindra Jadeja's 51, while Greg Lamb again proved his value to the side, taking 3/45 along the way to restricting India to 194/9 from their 50 overs. Some superb 'keeping from Tatenda Taibu, returning from injury, also did no harm to Zim's cause.

That left Zim chasing 195 to win, a score that, on paper, they should be able to chase down easily enough - but the spectre of the Zimbabwe Collapse™, as seen against Sri Lanka, was lurking in the background to potentially spoil the party. Zimbabwe's batting inconsistency is such that you never know which side will turn up to bat: the brittle, record-low-scoring one, or the solid, determined one - it usually takes a steady opening stand to ensure the latter, and today Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor stood up and provided that stand. The pair put on 128 runs for the opening wicket, cracking along at well above the asking rate and with one eye on the bonus point that could be scored if Zimbabwe could chase the target down inside 40 overs. Taylor was eventually the first to go, after adding an impressive 74, while Masakadza eventually holed out for 66, but by then the foundations for another stunning victory had been built. Charles Coventry made a useful cameo appearance, scoring 20 before heading back to the pavilion, leaving captain Elton Chigumbura (16*) and Tatenda Taibu (13*) to close out the match - which they did with plenty of time to spare.

The win puts Zimbabwe back on top of the points table, and almost certainly into the tri-series final. Well done the lads. Full scorecard below the cut.
India 194/9 (50 overs; Jadeja 51, Lamb 3/45), Zimbabwe 197/3 (38.2 overs; Taylor 74, Jadeja 2/27). Zimbabwe win by 7 wickets.

Zimbabwe showed their best form last Friday in their triumph over India; on Tuesday they showed their worst side as they capitulated easily to Sri Lanka by nine wickets. The match was reduced to 26 overs a side after heavy early-morning rain delayed the start until one o’clock, but had no excuse for a poor batting and bowling display that handed the tourists the match with more than ten overs to spare.

It was considered quite a disadvantage to Zimbabwe to lose the toss in these circumstances, and be put in to bat. They soon lost Brendan Taylor, who tamely edged a ball to the keeper in the second over. First Greg Lamb (10) and Craig Ervine (7) gave Hamilton Masakadza useful support for a while until both got out with strokes of frustration; with good bowling and a heavy pitch, quick run-getting was not easy. After ten overs, the score was 61 for two.

Charles Coventry scored 11, including a trademark big six, but then skied a boundary catch, making Zimbabwe 83 for four. Then disaster struck, as five wickets were to fall for only nine runs, including those of the two big hitters, Elton Chigumbura and Andy Blignaut. Chigumbura pulled a long hop from Jeevan Mendis on to his stumps, while Blignaut edged a catch groping outside the off stump; both scored only a single.

Raymond Price at last showed some fighting spirit, keeping his end up while Masakadza carried on batting superbly. He went to his fifty off 51 balls, and the 100 came up after 21 overs. Masakadza was finally out in the penultimate over, caught on the boundary at cow corner. His 62 came off 69 balls, and he hit four fours and one six. Next ball the innings closed, as Price skied a ball into the covers and the difficult catch was dropped, only for Price to attempt a ridiculous second run and get run out.

Zimbabwe had contrived to get themselves all out for 118 with seven balls still in hand. Extras, with 13, was the second best scorer. The most successful bowler was Suraj Randiv, with three wickets during Zimbabwe’s middle-order collapse. Nobody doubted the likelihood of Sri Lanka polishing off the runs with little difficulty.

Chris Mpofu began with a maiden over, although there were four leg-byes. But his next over was poor, Upal Tharanga hitting short wide balls for three fours in the backward point region. Tillakaratne Dilshan soon got in on the act and the boundaries flowed; it looked a different pitch altogether to that Zimbabwe batted on. They made 86 in less than 11 overs before Tharanga (40) looked for a quick single in the covers, but was sent back and run out, thanks to some quick work from Prosper Utseya.

Chigumbura again had problems with his bowling, his first two balls being slashed by Dilshan through point for four. In the next over the Sri Lankan captain reached his fifty off 34 balls. Runs flowed, with both Chigumbura and Cremer spraying the ball all over the pitch, and when a wide from Mpofu ended the match, Dilshan was unbeaten with 60 off 45 balls, with seven fours and a six. Each team now has one victory in this tournament, but Zimbabwe, after their good start, are now the team under pressure. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 118 (24.5/26 overs; Masakadza 62, Randiv 3/23), Sri Lanka 119/1 (15.2/26 overs; Dilshan 60*, Price 0/14). Sri Lanka win by 9 wickets.
[Source: ZC]

In a thrilling run-chase, Zimbabwe tracked down a daunting Indian total to win the opening match of the triangular tournament by six wickets with ten balls to spare. Despite a poor start, despite requiring a run rate of almost nine an over at one stage, they showed the spirit and skill to break through the barrier and win handsomely.

India decided to bat on winning the toss, correctly seeing little danger of early life in the pitch. Zimbabwe were lacking Tatenda Taibu, who has injured his ankle. India were given a flying start by Zimbabwe ’s new captain, Elton Chigumbura, who had a nightmare opening spell with the ball. If his first over was erratic, his second was horrendous, conceding 26 runs, most of them in leg-side wides that Brendan Taylor, the wicket-keeper, was unable to reach. When the 50 went up in the eighth over, 26 were extras, and three of those were wides.

At the other end Chris Mpofu was doing a steady job without support, but the momentum was broken by two fine run-outs. Murali Vijay paid the price for carelessness in turning back after considering a second run, and Taylor ’s backward underhand flick found him stranded; Virat Kohli didn’t face a ball before Chigumbura showed his fielding had not suffered, with a direct hit. When Dinesh Karthik edged an attempted cut off Utseya to the keeper, India were 61 for three in the 13th over.

Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina were forced to consolidate, contenting themselves with working the ball around for singles, which they did skilfully. The 100 came up in the 25th over, but at 128 Raina, growing impatient, slashed at a very wide ball from Mpofu and was caught at the wicket for 37 off 53 balls. But Sharma stood firm and increased the tempo, finding a good partner in Ravindra Jadeja. Once past 50, Sharma improvised marvellously at times and both made batting look easy; there was nothing the Zimbabwean bowlers could do to keep them under control.

With two overs to go Sharma finally skied a catch to the keeper and departed for 114, scored off 119 balls, with six fours and four sixes. With Yusuf Pathan contributing 11 off five balls, Jadeja finished unbeaten on 61 off the same number of balls. India totalled a very impressive 285 for five, with only three wickets falling to the bowlers. When Zimbabwe went in to bat after lunch, though, Hamilton Masakadza and Taylor immediately showed they were not to be daunted.

They latched on to the bad balls and played their strokes readily and responsibly, in particular driving with certainty. The 50 came up in the ninth over with another superb drive to the boundary by Masakadza, and then Taylor first pulled and then drove sixes in an over from Vinay Kumar. After ten overs, Zimbabwe had 68 on the board. At 88, though, Masakadza tried to force a ball from Amit Mishra off the back foot and was bowled for 46, off 43 balls. Greg Lamb did not look comfortable at the start, but the 100 came up in the 17th over, which put Zimbabwe well ahead of India at that stage. Immediately afterwards Taylor went to his 50 off the same number of balls.

After this the batsmen unaccountably went through a quiet period, and were beginning to fall behind the run rate when Lamb played down the wrong line to Ravindar Jadeja’s arm ball and was trapped lbw for 27; 151 for two in the 30th over. At 176 Taylor finally departed for 81 (103 balls), caught off a cramped pull; at this stage the required run rate was almost seven and over. It might have been a good time to send in Andy Blignaut – but Charles Coventry is no slouch either. But the required rate swelled to more than eight an over, and it should now have been clear that only something extraordinary would give Zimbabwe the victory that had looked well within their grasp during the opening partnership.

Coventry suddenly exploded with a huge six over the sightscreen off Pathan, and in the next over hit another over midwicket off Mishra; a third travelled over extra cover off Pathan, all going as high as they did long. But then Yadav bowled him through the gate as he was deceived by a slower ball, for 32 off 25 balls. With five overs to go, 42 were still needed, but they were now in the batting powerplay. Ervine, on his ODI debut, reached an admirable fifty off 51 balls, and 18 runs came off the 46th over, mostly to Chigumbura; Zimbabwe were favourites again, with both batsmen playing with great judgment. Two leg-side boundaries by Ervine, who batted like an experienced international player of real class, left four off the last two overs – but they were full tosses, and India ’s inexperience was letting them down. With ten balls to spare, a top-edged pull to the boundary over the keeper’s head by Chigumbura took Zimbabwe through to a fine victory. Ervine finished with 67 and Chigumbura with 20; Blignaut was not needed after all.

Despite their sagging run rate, Zimbabwe did not panic and managed to keep their target just within the realms of possibility while keeping their wickets intact. It will have done the morale of the side tremendous good, while India lacked the experienced bowlers who would surely have bowled better at the death than the enthusiastic but raw youngsters. Full scorecard below the cut.
[Source: ZC]

ZC have confirmed that Zimbabwe will host a triangular series with Sri Lanka and India after the World Twenty20. The series will be played between 26th May and 14th June, with both Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club hosting matches. The tri-series will be followed by a two-match Twenty20 series between Zimbabwe and India. Here's the schedule:

28 May 2010     Zimbabwe v India                Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
20 May 2010     India v Sri Lanka               Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
1 June 2010     Zimbabwe v Sri Lanka            Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
3 June 2010     Zimbabwe v India                Harare Sports Club
5 June 2010     India v Sri Lanka               Harare Sports Club
7 June 2010     Zimbabwe v Sri Lanka            Harare Sports Club
9 June 2010     Final                           Harare Sports Club

12 June 2010    Zimbabwe v India: 1st T20I      Harare Sports Club
12 June 2010    Zimbabwe v India: 2nd T20I      Harare Sports Club

Cricket New Zealand are reportedly looking to again reschedule their Future Tours Programme tour of Zimbabwe, originally scheduled for June 2009 before being initially moved to June 2010, citing "security and health" issues. Alternatively, they're prepared to play the series on neutral territory, according to their CEO Justin Vaughan:

"It is clear from our recent discussions that the government's assessment of the security situation in Zimbabwe has not changed from that of a year ago, when the scheduled tour was postponed. We have a possible window for the rescheduling of the tour next year [2011] in May/June. The other option is that we look at playing the scheduled tour in a neutral venue."

Zimbabwe & Zimbabwe XI are already slated to play Ireland and Scotland on neutral ground later this year for Intercontinental Cup matches and ODIs against Ireland, so there's precedent for this. I've already covered my thoughts on CNZ's approach to this issue in a previous article - I'll limit myself here to saying that they seem to have all the backbone of their emblem.
Cricinfo - New Zealand pull out of Zimbabwe tour

West Indies completed their series against Zimbabwe yesterday, taking the series 4-1 - but once again, Zimbabwe's spinners made sure the Windies had to work for their win, even when chasing a well below-par total after Zimbabwe's batting imploded once again. Having won the toss, West Indies put Zimbabwe in to bat, and were immediately in the wickets as Hamilton Masakadza went without scoring. He was the first of a procession of wickets, with Darren Sammy (3/33) leading the carnage - Zimbabwe were down to #6, Charles Coventry (56), before they found someone able to put down some roots, and by then the side's chances of posting a competitive total were long gone. Coventry's departure signalled the beginning of the end, and Zimbabwe were bowled out for 161 on the final ball of the innings.

That left the West Indies with what should have been a fairly straightforward chase, on paper, and the opening pair of Adrian Barath (16) and Chris Gayle (63) led the charge, with the Windies putting on 96 runs in 15.2 overs befoew Gayle finally departed. Zimbabwe's bowlers clearly weren't going to simply lie down, though, and when Gayle, Deonarine (3) and the Bravo brothers (14 & 0) fell in quick succession there was a glimmer of light for Zimbabwe. With Gayle's early onslaught having reduced the required rate to just over 2/over, though, Zimbabwe really needed to bowl the Windies out to secure a win - but the arrival of Kieron Pollard (36 from 22 balls) signalled the end of Zimbabwe's defiance, and the winning runs were knocked off in the 28th over.

Now, if that match report sounds vaguely familiar, it is: it's a copy'n'paste of what I wrote for the 4th ODI, with a few names & scores changed. In broad strokes, though, both the 4th and 5th matches followed the same, depressing script, and that's possible the most damning indictment of Zimbabwe's performance in yesterday's match: nothing appears to have been learnt. If Zimbabwe are truly planning to return to Test cricket before the end of this year, as David Houghton has indicated, then some serious soul-searching is required as to what went wrong with this series after Zimbabwe's stellar start. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 161 (50 overs; Coventry 56, Sammy 3/33), West Indies 165/6 (27.4 overs; Gayle 63, Utseya 2/41). West Indies win by 6 wickets.

West Indies secured the series win against Zimbabwe today, leading the series 3-1 with one to play after a 4-wicket win - but once again, Zimbabwe's spinners made sure the Windies had to work for their win, even when chasing a well below-par total after Zimbabwe's batting imploded once again. Having won the toss, West Indies put Zimbabwe in to bat, and were immediately in the wickets as Hamilton Masakadza went without scoring. He was the first of a procession of wickets, with Chris Gayle (4/21) leading the carnage - Zimbabwe were down to #8, Elton Chigumbura (42), before they found someone able to put down some roots, and by then the side's chances of posting a competitive total were long gone. Chigumbura's departure signalled the beginning of the end, and Zimbabwe were bowled out for 141 in the 49th over.

That left the West Indies with what should have been a fairly straightforward chase, on paper, and the opening pair of Adrian Barath (25) and Chris Gayle (32) led the charge, putting on 46 runs in the first six overs. Zimbabwe's bowlers clearly weren't going to simply lie down, though, and when Gayle, Chanderpaul (2) and Barath fell in quick succession there was a glimmer of light for Zimbabwe. After Gayle's departure, the combined spin attack managed to choke the flow of runs once more - but with Gayle's early onslaught having reduced the required rate to just over 2/over, Zimbabwe really needed to bowl the Windies out to secure a win - but only three more wickets fell before the home side knocked off the required runs, and secured the series, in the 35th over. It was a brave effort by the bowlers, led by Graeme Cremer's 3/34, but the damage to the cause had already been down by Zim's earlier batting collapse.

Another disappointing loss, then, but still some hope that Zim can pull off one more good performance in the final match on Sunday. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 141 (48.2 overs; Chigumbura 42, Bravo 4/21), West Indies 142/6 (34.3 overs; Gayle 32, Cremer 3/34). West Indies win by 4 wickets.