Story by Lawrence Trusida, Sports Editor
RETURNING Chevrons’ star Regis Chakabva was the hero of the day as the Harare Hurricanes registered their first win in the inaugural Zim Afro T10 tournament after beating Durban Qalandars by five wickets at the Harare Sports Club this Sunday.
It was a massive performance from Chakabva, who scored an unbeaten 44 to help his side register their first points of the tournament.
Batting first, the Durban Qalandars lost the in-form Hazratullah Zazai for 3, when he was bowled by Mohammad Nabi.
At the other end though, Tim Seifert was going great guns, and dealing in big hits, much to the joy of the fans at the stadium who were enjoying the Sunday sun.
Seifert and young Zimbabwean batsman Nick Welch put on an unbeaten 43-run stand as the Qalandars posted 126/3 in their 10 overs with Seifert finishing on 71 not out.
In response, the Hurricanes had a stuttering start, as they lost the wickets of Robin Uthappa for one and captain Eoin Morgan for two in the early overs.
Regis Chakabva and Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan came together after that, with the veteran taking up the responsibility of attacking the Qalandars.
Pathan’s stay in the middle was a short one, but he smashed Linde for a hat-trick of sixes to score a quick 37 from 14 balls, to put pressure back on the Qalandars.
At this point, the game was on a knife edge, but Donovan Ferreira added a quick-fire 16 before he too was dismissed, even as Chakabva was holding out at the other end, keeping the Hurricanes in the hunt for their first win of the tournament.
In the home stretch, Nabi was dismissed for 19 but it was Chakabva, who was the hero of the day for the Hurricanes, as he took charge and helped his team storm over the line for their first win of the tournament.
The national team wicketkeeper remained unbeaten on 44 as the Hurricanes won by 5 wickets.
Meanwhile, Tadiwanashe Marumani continued with his blistering form after smashing 54 runs of 24 balls to lead the Cape Town Samp Army to a comfortable seven wickets win over the Johannesburg Buffaloes.
