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Zimbabwe XI trounced Canada by an innings and 73 runs, taking only three days to wrap up their Intercontinental Cup meeting with the North American side and in doing so claiming the largest winning margin of the tournament so far and maintaining their unbeaten record. The seeds of the victory were planted on day one when after winning the toss, Canada were put in to bat by Vusi Sibanda and promptly collapsed in a way that's normally associated with Zimbabwe - and I have to say it's nice to watch such collapses from the other side. Canada managed a poor 129 from their first innings, with Rizwan Cheema's unbeaten 46 being the pick of the bunch (and one of only three scores to reach double figures). Zimbabwe's bowlers produced a team effort, with Ed Rainsford and Tendai Chatara bagging three each and Shingi Masakadza and Timycen Maruma each bagging a pair.

Zimbabwe XI's first innings was for the most part a story of starts that didn't go on, but a stand-out knock of 177 by Craig Ervine - his second ton in two matches - helped push the side to 351 before he was finally stumped, the last wicket to fall. That Shingi Masakadza's 35 was the next-highest score underlines the continuing frailty of Zimbabwe's batting, though, and is a problem that remains to be addressed. Umar Bhatti took 6/98 for Canada, but despite his best efforts the home side were left with a mountain to climb even to make Zimbabwe bat again.

It was a mountain they failed to conquer, as Canada's second innings was barely better than the first. Hamza Tariq was the top-scorer this time around, scoring 39 before being run out, but a stellar performance from Shingi Masakadza (5/58) saw the home side bowled out for 149, well short of making Zimbabwe bat again, and that was all she wrote.

Full scorecard below the cut. Zimbabwe XI now move to second place in the tournament table, behind Scotland, who along with Ireland are our remaining opponents in the competition. Full scorecard below the cut.
Canada 129 (54.2 overs; Rizwan Cheema 46*, Chatara 3/21) & 149 (56.5 overs; Hamza Tariq 39, Masakadza 5/58), Zimbabwe XI 351 (97.1 overs; Ervine 177, Bhatti 6/98). Zimbabwe XI win by an innings and ?3 runs.

Zimbabwe XI took revenge for the drubbing they received from Netherlands in their one-day fixture with a comprehensive 137-run victory in the far more important Intercontinental Cup meeting between the two sides. It's a result that, an hour after the match started on Sunday, looked unlikely - after winning the toss and opting to bat, Zim's openers slumped to a dire 3/8 in 3 overs, leaving them with a mountain to climb, but climb it they did, with a lot of help from Craig Ervine. Coming in at number five, the younger Ervine put down roots and, initially with Stuart Matsikenyeri (44) and later with Regis Chakabva (34), built the foundations for what eventually turned out to be a decent first-innings score. Ervine was eventually out for a career-best 145, as Zimbabwe XI reached 298 before being bowled out. Berend Westdijk, responsible for the early carnage, went on to be the best of the Deutch bowlers, taking 4/46.

The Dutch batting fortunately turned out to be even flakier than the Zimbabwean. Once again it fell to three players to form the groundings of their innings, but Wesley Barresi (81), Pietar Seelar (40*) and Ruud Nijman (23) received virtually no support from their compatriots - none of them reaching double figures - as the Dutch were bowled out for 186, handing Zimbabwe XI the first-innings points and a lead of 112.

That gave Zimbabwe a chance to build an unassailable second-innings lead, a chance that for once they didn't squander. Four of the visitors passed 50 - Vusi Sibanda's 88 led the scoring and Matsikenyeri (68) was again in the runs, while Ervine (59) and Chakabva (54) took the lead past 400 before Sibanda declared with the score on 305/5, setting the Dutch a target of 418 to win the day - or batting for a day and a half to force a draw.

Neither of those outcomes ever really looked likely, although to their credit the Dutch didn't give-up without a fight. Eric Szwarczynski led the fight with a composed 81, while Seelar (81) kept the tail wagging for long enough to perhaps cause a few nerves amongst the Zimbabweans. The home side only managed to reach 280, though (with Ruud Nijman unable to bat due to a broken hand), leaving Zimbabwe XI with a clear win and the maximum 20 tournament points from the match.

Zimbabwe XI now move on to Canada for their next fixture. After this performance, you would have to consider them favourites to secure another win. Full scorecard below the cut.
Zimbabwe XI 298 (89 overs; Ervine 145, Westdijk 4/46) & 305/5 decl (70.3 overs; Sibanda 88, Jonkman 2/63), Netherlands 186 (75.5 overs; Barresi 81, Mushangwe 3/47) & 280 (94 overs; Seelar 81*, Maruma 3/44). Zimbabwe XI win by 137 runs.

In some ways you could have probably seen this coming - while the Netherlands are currently on something of a roll, having just defeated Bangladesh and claimed their place on the ICC ODI rankings table, most of the Zimbabwe XI side haven't seen competitive cricket since the end of the domestic season, and their rustiness certainly showed yesterday as they slumped to a 58-run defeat against the men in orange. Not that excuses should be made for such a dismal performance.

Netherlands won the toss and opted to bat, and in the opening innings it seemed that Zimbabwe had the upper hand - the bowlers certainly kept a lid on the Dutch, taking regular wickets and effectively restricting the scoring as the home side only managed to limp their way to 194/9 from their 50 overs. Tom Cooper (49) and Wesley Barresi (47) were the only two notable knocks, while Ed Rainsford led Zim's bowling figures with 3/39, assisted by Shingi Masakadza and Nathan Waller who chipped in with two apiece. At the half-way point, a Zimbabwean win certainly seemed likely enough.

As anyone who follows Zim cricket will know, though, you can never really place your faith in the batsmen, and while the bowling attack came to play, the batsman never did. Whether is was lack of match practice, unfamiliar conditions, or a Dutch attack that had been paying attention is ultimately irrelevant - Zimbabwe simply failed to apply themselves, with several players getting bogged down and failing to score at anything close to the required rate. Only Charles Coventry, with 31 off 37 balls, came out of the innings with any pride intact, while of the rest only Stuart Matsikenyeri (22) passed 15. The innings ended with a whimper as Zimbabwe's innings ended for a paltry 136. It's worth noting that Sean Williams was unable to bat through injury.

It's a performance that simply must not be repeated in the Intercontinental Cup match, starting tomorrow, if Zimbabwe XI want to retain any chance of reaching the final. At the moment, though, the Dutch clearly have the upper hand going into that match. Full scorecard below the cut.
Netherlands 194/9 (50 overs; Cooper 49, Rainsford 3/39), Zimbabwe XI 136 (39.4 overs; Coventry 31, Jonkman 3/18). Netherlands win by 58 runs.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
Zimbabwe 165/7 (20 overs; Chirimuta 38, Rafferty 3/29), South Africa 166/1 (18.1 overs; Price 98*, Jaure 0/21). South Africa U19 win by 9 wickets.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
South Africa 209/2 (20 overs; Price 81, Jaure 2/25), Zimbabwe 166/8 (20 overs; Chiwara 25, Price 3/24). South Africa U19 win by 43 runs.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
Zimbabwe 218/9 (50 overs; Moor 116*, Fortune 2/23), South Africa 219/1 (46.2 overs; de Kock 94, Waller 1/48). South Africa U19 win by 9 wickets.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
ZCA 270/7 (50 overs; Mutizwa 110, Henry 2/50), SA U19 213 (43.4 overs; Jennings 55, Nyumbu 3/31). Zimbabwe Cricket Academy win by 57 runs.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
Zimbabwe 136 (38.1 overs; Kahiya 29, Engelbrecht 4/19), South Africa 140/2 (36.1 overs; Jennings 45, Hook 1/30). South Africa U19 win by 8 Wickets.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.

Working through the scorecards for the recent South Africa U19 tour of Zimbabwe, which saw SA claim a series whitewash. No comment on these as I wasn't able to follow them, but the scorecards are presented for completeness.
Zimbabwe 223 (50 overs; Chari 62, Henry 4/39), South Africa 226/9 (50 overs; Jennings 65, Chirimuta 1/21). South Africa U19 win by 1 wicket.