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Essentially settling the tournament's only abandoned match, the 3rd-place playoff was a simple affair for the Desert Vipers, who claimed a 35-run victory over the Bulawayo side in the first of today's matches. Batting first after winning the toss, Vipers amassed a less-than-impressive 126/7 from their 20 overs. Raymond van Schoor (46) and Dwaine Pretorius (36) accounted for most of Vipers' total, with the rest of the side failing to manage significant contributions. Where they were poor, though, Tuskers were woeful, with 8 of their side failing to reach double figures and only Tawanda Mupariwa (31) at 9th putting up significant resistance as the side were bowled out for 91. A disappointing end to the tourney for Tuskers. Full scorecard below the cut.
Vipers 126/7 (20 overs; van Schoor 46, Mpofu 2/26), Tuskers 91 (18.3 overs; Mupariwa 31, Klazinga 2/13). Vipers win by 35 runs.

The second match of the day was also the final match of the group stage, pitting Desert Vipers - already out of the running - against Midwest Rhinos who, depending on whether you believed CricInfo's tournament table or SuperSport's, may still have been in with a shout. Vipers were at the crease first, as posted a decent 141/7 from their 20 overs - a score higher than it seemed they would get, after the side's top order failed to fire. It was the eventual arrival of #7 Chrisit Viljoen that finally put some urgency into the innings - he added 41 off 21 balls before losing his wicket on the final ball of the innings. Taurai Muzarabani took 2/24 to lead the bowling for Rhinos. In reply, early efforts by Rikki Wessels (32 off 15 balls) and Darren Stevens (33 off 25) saw Rhinos appear to be on course for victory, but the lower order unfortunately went to pieces under the Vipers' attack and the side limped its way to a disappointing 132/9 at the close. Louis Klazinga took 3/41, in the process almost certainly ensuring his side a place in the 3rd/4th place playoff. Full scorecard below the cut.
Vipers 141/7 (20 overs; Viljoen 41, Muzarabani 2/24), Rhinos 132/9 (20 overs; Stevens 33, Klazinga 3/41). Vipers win by 9 runs.

Only one match today in the Stanbic T20, and while both Matabeleland Tuskers and Desert Vipers had outside chances of reaching the final (dependent on results elsewhere), those chances were taken from them by rain late in the day. Vipers at least got to complete their innings, after winning the toss and opting to bat, and posted 147/4. Raymond van Schoor got the side off to a decent start with 44, while Dwaine Pretorius ended the innings on 48 not-out, but support from others was lacking and the total wasn't as good as it could have been. Not that it mattered - Tuskers only got 17 balls under their belts before the rain drew a line under the day's play, and that was the end of that. Full scorecard below the cut.
Vipers 147/4 (20 overs; Pretorius 48*, Higgins 1/7, Williams 1/7), Tuskers 23/1 (4.1/20 overs; Coventry 15*, Klazinga 0/6). No result - match abandoned (rain).

Day Six, and we're on the downward run towards the final in the Stanbic T20. The first matchup of the day was Mountaineers v Desert Vipers, with both sides in with a shout of a final spot depending how the result of this match went. Mountaineers won the toss and chose to bat, and openers Bernard Mlambo and Hamilton Masakadza made a good start, putting on 81 for the opening wicket before Mlambo departed for 24. Masakadza went on to score 52 himself before being bowled by Williams, and while the wickets began to flow fairly regularly from there (Stuart Matsikenyeri's 32 was the best of the rest) the side were still able to push on to 172/8 from their allotted overs. In reply, Vipers lost Rudolph (5) early, but then Raymond van Schoor and Craig Williams set off at a cracking pace - their run-rate was over 10/over until van Schoor departed for 31, while Williams hung around a while longer, adding 35 himself before being bowled by Mushangwe in the 11th over with the score on 91. At that point Vipers were well-placed, but that was also the point where the wheels fell off their innings somewhat, with a number of quick wickets making sure that they simply weren't able to get scoring again at anywhere near the required rate. Their innings finally petered out with the side closing on 150/9 after their 30 overs, handing Mountaineers a convincing 21-run yet. Full scorecard below the cut.
Mountaineers 172/8 (20 overs; H Masakadza 52, Williams 3/28), Vipers 150/9 (20 overs; Williams 35, Maruma 3/24). Mountaineers win by 21 runs.

The first match of the day at Harare Sports Club saw Desert Vipers lose their unbeaten record, after they were narrowly beaten by Mashonaland Eagles in a close-fought thriller. Eagles won the toss and put Vipers in to bat, and, ironically led by Zimbabwean player Norbert Manyande's 51, Vipers posted a decent 142. Early breakthroughs by Eagles' bowlers had left the Namibian side looking shaky at 24/3 before Manyande paired up with Dwaine Pretorious for an 88-run partnership for the 4th wicket, scored at more than a run a ball, that put the Vipers back on track. Douglas Hondo led the bowling for the Eagles, taking 2/13. In reply, Doug Marillier proved the rock of Eagles' innings, scoring 74 before bowing out with his side just keeping up with the required rate. Eagles reached their final over needing 5 runs to win with 5 wickets in hand, but needed just two balls of the over to finish the match off. Full scorecard below the cut.
Vipers 142/6 (20 overs; Manyande 51, Hondo 2/13), Eagles 144/5 (19.1 overs; Marillier 74, Klazinga 1/13). Eagles win by 5 wickets.

Namibia's Desert Vipers stamped their authority on the Southern Rocks, and marked themselves out as one of the sides to watch in the competition, with a convincing 46-run victory in today's first match. Vipers were put into bat after Rocks won the toss, and while Rocks made an early breakthrough with the wicker of opener Raymond van Schoor with the score on 3, most of the rest of those who got to the crease made useful contributions, pushing the side to 152/5 for their 20 overs. In reply, Rocks went all to pieces, despite their latest influx of new talent, managing just 106 before being bowled out. Alester Maregwede top-scored with 23, but it was Tony Palladino who truly marked the difference between the two sides, taking 4/21 from just 3.3 overs to ensure that Rocks' woeful season continues. The margin of victory was enough to leave Vipers top of the table on Net Run Rate at the end of the day, while Rocks were left languishing at the bottom. Full scorecard below the cut.
Vipers 152/5 (20 overs; Williams 50, Kamungozi 1/22), Rocks 106 (18.3 overs; Maregwede 23, Palladino 4/21). Vipers win by 46 runs.