Rhinos, Mountaineers seal Pro50 Champs final slot

RHINOS sealed their place in the Pro50 Championship final after defeating the early tournament leaders, Tuskers, by 50 runs in their last round-robin match at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Sunday.

The main architects of the victory were their opening batter Takudzwanashe Kaitano, whose 93 runs proved the difference.

Leg-spinner Brandon Mavuta also played a part after he broke a dangerous partnership and finished off the Tuskers innings.

Tuskers put Rhinos in to bat on winning the toss, and immediately found Kaitano in brilliant batting form.

Prince Masvaure gave him good support as the pair plundered 68 runs off the first eight overs before Masvaure, trying to give his aggressive partner the strike, called for a quick single to extra cover and was run out by Ainsley Ndlovu.

This began a middle-order slide, as Kaitano held firm but his next four partners scored only 11 runs between them so that the fifth wicket fell at 96.

Neville Madziva, as in Friday’s match, stopped the rot and proved a sound partner for Kaitano as he swept towards a century.

Unfortunately, it was not to be, as with 93 to his credit off 102 balls, he miscued a scoop to fine leg and popped a simple catch, having hit two sixes and 12 fours.

The score was then 145 for six wickets in the 34th over, and the innings would have faded away had Mavuta not stood firm with Madziva, the pair adding 56 for the eighth wicket in 11 overs.

Both batters then went for 36, with Madziva, having supported Kaitano well, taking 61 balls without a single boundary, while Mavuta, free to be more aggressive, took only 43.

Rhinos were all out in the 48th over for 214. The pace bowlers had been ineffective, taking not a wicket between them, but Nkosana Mpofu had figures of three for 28 and there were two wickets each for Ndlovu and Allan Chigoma.

RHINOS – 214 all out in 47.4 overs (Takudzwanashe Kaitano 93, Brandon Mavuta

36, Neville Madziva 36; Nkosana Mpofu 3/28, Ainsley Ndlovu 2/24, Allan Chigoma 2/37)

TUSKERS – 164 all out in 42.3 overs (Brian Chari 61, Ainsley Ndlovu 34, Tanunurwa Makoni 23; Brandon Mavuta 4/29, Johnathan Campbell 2/29, Prince Masvaure 2/38)

RHINOS WON BY 50 RUNS — zimcricket