3RD MATCH -- ZIMBABWE v KENYA (Abandoned match)

Patna the Zimbabweans felt was the most unsatisfactory venue at which they had to play, although the ground itself was in good condition and obviously a great deal of preparation had gone into this match. Patna, according to Andy Flower, seems like it is in the middle of nowhere. They were well looked after by the locals, but it was not one of the main centres, the city itself was dirty and facilities were inevitably rather spartan.

The weather on the morning of this match was overcast and there was some life and movement in the pitch when Zimbabwe chose to bat. It may well be thought that Zimbabwe were overconfident when facing their weak opponents, but Grant Flower feels that if anything the reverse was the case: they felt the pressure more because they were expected to win, whereas in the other matches they were always the underdogs.

Grant Flower feels that the three Zimbabwean wickets that fell were due to poor strokes more than anything else. Kenya used the conditions fairly well with their limited bowling resources and Zimbabwe were not batting very confidently at that time. Eddo Brandes missed this match, and indeed the rest of the tournament, after straining a tendon behind his knee during pre-match practice.

Andy Waller fell early, but a good partnership seemed to be deve-loping between Grant Flower and Guy Whittall before the latter tried to hit over the field and was caught at mid-off, on the edge of the 30-metre circle. Alistair Campbell almost immediately played across the line to a straight ball, to be given out lbw. The Kenyans concentrated simply on bowling straight and their policy looked to be paying dividends.

Captain Andy Flower had just reached the crease and had not faced a ball when the rain came, the players left the field and never returned. The locals tried to dry the pitch with a helicopter, but the plan backfired, as it actually blew off the covers and blew a lot of the water next to the square back on to it. According to the ICC regulations, a completely new match would have to be started on the following day.

Zimbabwe were in a fairly difficult position and it can obviously never be known whether they would have been able to extricate themselves. A personal view, as well as that expressed by the players, is that they probably would if the match went the full distance: the Flower brothers were still there, both doughty fighters, and there was quite a bit of batting to come, while the pressure would have been on the Kenyan batsmen to make whatever target was set them. Zimbabwe's experience, even at this stage, would probably have made them still favourites, although it would doubtless have been a much closer match than the replay proved to be. They were extremely worried when the interruption came, though, that the number of overs might be considerably reduced, which would not have allowed them time to recover and would have worked very much against them.

The Zimbabweans got on well with the Kenyans on and off the field, finding them an exuberant, enthusiastic side who gave full commitment and were by no means shy off the field.

Material on this site is copyright by the Zimbabwe Cricket Union and CricInfo except where otherwise stated in the source or copyright statements.

Internet connectivity for the Zimbabwe Cricket Union is provided by Samara Internet Services