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A 13th-place finish is lower than many would have hoped for, but better than it looked like we were going to get - and a 137-run win over Hong Kong in the final match at least gives the side the opportunity to go home on a high note. Hong Kong won the toss and opted to field, and after the early loss of Tino Mutombodzi while the score was just 3, the side went on to set the running for the match in decent style, putting on 235/8 from their 50 overs, with Peter Moor (46) and Andrew Lindsay (43) making the greatest contributions. Max Tucker took 3/32 for HK, and that was as good as it got for the Asian side, as come their turn to bat they imploded for just 98. Ashish Gadhia and Nizakat Khan shared top-scoring honours, although with 16 runs apiece it was hardly anything to write home about, while Natsai Mushangwe led the Zim bowling with 4/18; Callum Price, Nathan Waller, Steve Chimhamhiwa and Simon Mugava chipped in with one apiece. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 235/8 (50 overs; Moor 46, Tucker 3/32), Hong Kong 98 (36.4 overs; Ashish Gadhia 16, Mushangwe 4/18). Zimbabwe U19 win by 137 runs.

Zim U19 finally got a win under their belt, with a convincing 5-wicket win over the United States of America in another rain-affected match. USA, put into bat when Zimbabwe won the toss, were bowled out for 115, with Greg Sewdial's 35 being the best of a poor bunch; Natsai Mushangwe and Nathan Waller took three apiece for Zimbabwe. It took Zim just 29 overs to chase down the target, with Tino Mutombodzi leading the way with 39. The win sees Zim through to the 13th-place playoff final against Hong Kong. Full scorecard below the cut.
USA 115 (33.1/41 overs; Sewdial 35, Mushangwe 3/13), Zimbabwe 119/5 (29/41 overs; Mutombodzi 39, Saqib Saleem 4/38). Zimbabwe U19 win by 5 wickets.

Zimbabwe U19's horror of a World Cup campaign continued with a 7-wicket loss to Ireland in a rain-affected match. Put into bat after Ireland won the toss, Zim managed to post just 102 before being bowled out in their final over, with Peter Moor (28), Natasi Mushangwe (24) and Nathan Waller (17) the only players to reach double figures. Craig Young did most of the damage, taking 4/14 from his seven overs. Set a Duckworth-Lewis target of 110 to win from 27 overs, Ireland handily reached the target with 6 overs and 7 wickets to spare, led by Paul Stirling's 65. The loss sees Zimbabwe relegated to the 13-place playoffs, where they'll meet USA in the semi-finals. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe 102 (26.2/27 overs; Moor 28, Young 4/14), Ireland 110/3 (20.2/27 overs; Stirling 65, Mugava 1/18). Ireland U19 win by 7 wickets. (D/L Method)

Zimbabwe completed the group stage of their U19 World Cup campaign with a 7-wicket loss to New Zealand earlier this morning. The story was uch the same as Zimbabwe's outing against New Zealand - a woeful display with the bat (only three players reaching double figures, with Tino Mutombodzi's 28 being the best of the bunch. Zim managed 135 from their innings and can count themselves luck to have reached it, with NewZealand conceding 28 runs themselves by way of extras. Tim Johnston led the bowling with 3/37.

The runchase was a formality for New Zealand, with the opening pair of Harry Boam (58) and Tom Latham (57*) doing most of the work, and the chase was over within 26 overs. Calum Price took 2/32 for Zimbabwe, as New Zealand collapsed slightly during the closing overs, but by then the match was essentially already over.

Zimbabwe's next match is now in the Plate quarter-finals on January 23rd, against Ireland. Full scorecard for this match is below the cut.
Zimbabwe 135 (42.2 overs; Mutombodzi 28, Johnston 3/37), New Zealand 140/3 (25.3 overs; Boam 58, Price 2/32). New Zealand win by 7 wickets.

A frankly woeful performance by Zimbabwe U19 in their second U19 World Cup match - a shortened affair set at 34 overs per side - saw them collapse to an 8-wicket loss at the hands of Sri Lanka. Put into bat after Sri Lanka won the toss, Zimbabwe were skittled out for 121, with seven batsmen failing to reach double figures and only a patient 42* by Tino Mutombodzi saving Zim from further humiliation. Charith Jayampathi did most of the damage, taking 4/26 from his 7 overs. From there, victory was simply a formality for Sri Lanka, who knocked off the required runs for the loss of just 2 wickets, with Bhanuka Rajapaksa's 49* leading the way. Nathan Waller's 2/26 was the best from Zimbabwe's bowling figures.

With just the match against New Zealand to play, Zimbabwe now can't qualify for the Super League phase and will instead play in the Plate Championship. Full scorecard for this match below the cut.
Zimbabwe 121 (33.3/34 overs; Mutombodzi 42*, Jayampathi 4/26), Sri Lanka 122/2 (24.2/34 overs; Rajapaksa 49*, Waller 2/26). Sri Lanka U19 win by 8 wickets.

Canada sneaked a 1-run victory over Zimbabwe in the opening round og the U19 World Cup earlier today, in a match that featured poor batting on both sides. Canada won the toss and opted to bat, setting a target of 201 from their 50 overs for the loss of 7 wickets. Usman Limbada (90) did most of the work, with Hiral Patel's 29 the best of the rest, while Nathan Waller topped the Zimbabwean bowling figures with 2/29.

That would have been a total that Zimbabwe would have had hoped of chasing, but once again the side's batting frailties let them dow - it's becoming a depressing habit that, despite the undoubted talent that's in the side, it seems that only one or two will ever manage a decent score in any match. Today, Dean Mazhawidza (75) and Andrew Lindsay (40) were the pair in form, but the failure of the rest of the side - 14 was the top score from the remaining batsmen - left Zimbabwe painfully short against a side that they should have beaten. Full scorecard below the cut.
Canada 201/7 (50 overs; Usman Limbada 90, Nathan Waller 2/29), Zimbabwe 191 (49.4 overs; Mazhawida 75, Zain Mahmood 3/31). Canada U19 win by 10 runs.

Zimbabwe picked up a morale-boosting win over Afghanistan in their second U19 World Cup warm-up match in New Zealand this morning. Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field, giving Afghanistan the chance to set the running in the match. With five of the Afghan batsmen failing to reach double figures, though, the side was in trouble from the start, with the wicket of #2 Anwar Anwari (0) falling with the score on just one, and regular wickets falling from there. Callum Price led the Zimbabwe attack, taking 3/57, while Hashmatullah Shaidi (50) was able to add some respectability to the innings for Afghanistan. They were still bowled out for 175, though, a total far short of where they would have wanted to be.

That said, Zim U19's batting is notoriously flakey, with most matches seeing one or two players but in decent performances while the rest of the side collapses around them. Today, though, enough players made a contribution to see Zimbabwe ease to a comfortable win, with Peter Moor's 45 leading the way. Andrew Lindsay (37), Dylon Higgins (30) and Scott Daly (23) also chipped in as Zim reached their target in the 41st over. Ayub Khan took 2/28 for Afghanistan.

Full scorecard below the cut. Zimbabwe's first competitive match in the tournament is against Canada on Friday (15th).
Afghanistan 175 (44.2/47 overs; Hashmatullah Shaidi 50, Price 3/57), Zimbabwe 176/6 (40.3/47 overs; Moor 45, Ayub Khan 2/28). Zimbabwe U19 win by 4 wickets.

Zimbabwe U19 played the first of two warm-up matches in New Zealand earlier this morning, with Pakistan being the opposition. Pakistan, you may remember, beat Zimbabwe 7-1 when they visited Zim earlier in the year, so hopes weren't too high ahead of this match - that said, though, while Zimbabwe lost there was no disgrace in it. Batting first, Pakistan posted 257/5 from their 50 overs, thanks in no small part to opener Muhammad Babar's 103. Hammad Azam also powered his way to 40 not-out in the closing stages, off just 22 balls. Apart from that, though there was little to cheer from the performances of the other Pakistani batsmen.

Sadly the story was much the same for Zimbabwe, with the main difference being the lack of an innings like Babar's to anchor the innings. Andrew Lindsay's 61 was the best of the bunch, off 45 balls, with Gary Chirimuuta (40) and Peter Moor (38) also chipping in, but wickets fell regularly around them and they were bowled out in the final over for 219. Raza Hassan took 5/36 to lead the Pakistani bowling figures. Full scorecard below the cut - Zimbabwe's next fixture is another warm-up match against Afgahnistan tomorrow.
Pakistan 257/5 (50 overs; Muhammad Babar 103, Waller 2/23), Zimbabwe 219 (49.1 overs; Lindsay 61, Raza Hassan 5/36). Pakistan U19 win by 38 runs.

ZC have named their 15-man squad for the U19 World Cup, according to the Zimbabwe Independent. The tournament takes place in New Zealand in January next year. Peter Moor returns to the side after some time out for schooling reasons, while the side will be captained by Dylon Higgins. The side will play a number of warm-up matches in Cape Town ahead of the trip.

The full squad is:
Dylon Higgins (captain), Peter Moor, Gary Chirimuta, Dean Mazhawidza, Andrew Lindsay, Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Nathan Waller, Natsayi Mushangwe, Callum Price, Steve Chimhamhiwa, Richard Muzhange, Simon Mugava, Scott Daly, Mazvita Zambuko, Tendai Chitara.
Zimbabwe Independent - Zimbabwe U-19 World Cup Squad Named

The ICC have confirmed the draw for the group stage of next year's U19 World Cup in New Zealand, and Zimbabwe have been grouped with New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Canada in Group C, whose matches will take place in and around Christchurch. The full draw is:
Group A: India, England, Afghanistan, Hong Kong
Group B: South Africa, Australia, Ireland, USA
Group C: New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada
Group D: Pakistan, Bangladesh, West Indies, Papua New Guinea
The full fixture list is yet to be confirmed.
ICC - Schedule confirmed for ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2010