Mashonaland Eagles 182 for 2 (Matsikenyeri 77, Raza 46) beat Mountaineers 179 for 9 (S Masakadza 52*, H Masakadza 49) by eight wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
A 102-run partnership between opener Stuart Matsikenyeri and No. 4 Sikandar Raza sealed Mashonaland Eagles' eight-wicket win over Mountaineers in Harare. This was after their collective bowling effort helped restrict Mountaineers to 179 for 9, an innings which featured a half-century from lower-order batsman Shingi Masakadza, and a near half-century (49) by his brother Hamilton. But besides the two knocks, Mountaineers couldn't offer much resistance to the bowling.
Their innings was full of small partnerships, but none progressed beyond 42 runs. The most productive stand, between Shingi Masakadza and Donald Tiripano was for the eighth wicket, after they were in trouble at 104 for 7. Towards the end of the innings, the last-wicket pair added 33 in 3.3 overs to boost their total. But that didn't prove to be a difficult one to chase, as Matsikenyeri, scoring 77, featured in productive partnerships with three other top-order batsmen to clinch victory in the 43rd over.
Mid West Rhinos 302 for 6 (Taylor 134, Sibanda 106, Musoko 3-67) beat Southern Rocks 113 (Masvaure 40, Nkala 5-35) by 189 runs
Scorecard
At the Kwekwe Sports Club, another one-sided contest took place. Centuries by opener Vusi Sibanda and Brendan Taylor, and an effective spell of 5 for 35 from seamer Mluleki Nkala ensured a comprehensive 189-run win for Mid West Rhinos over Southern Rocks. After being put in to bat, Sibanda and Taylor scored 204 runs together to lead their side to a strong 302 for 6, after which seamer Richard Muzhange, by taking early wickets, laid the base for fellow seamers Ed Rainsford and Nkala to ensure a clinical win.
Sibanda's knock of 106 contained nine boundaries and a six, but the more aggressive innings was played by captain Taylor, who scored 134 off 106 deliveries with the help of 15 boundaries. When their mammoth stand was broken in the 43rd over, their team was a strong 247 for 2. Towards the end there was slight stutter, but they managed to reach 300. In reply, only middle-order batsman Prince Masvaure resisted, with his knock of 40, as the seamers ran through the line-up.