ASHLEY DUBE
Johannesburg Buffaloes – 127-4 in 10 overs (Tom Banton 36, Mohammad Hafeez 32, Yusuf Pathan 25; Azmatullah Ormazai 1/8, George Linde 1/22, Tayyab Abbas 1/26)
Durban Qalandars – 129-2 in 9.2 overs (Hazratullah Zazai 43*, Tim Seifert 30, Andre Fletcher 29; Usman Shinwari 2/15)
The Durban Qalandars emerged as the champions of the inaugural Zim Afro T10 cricket tournament with a convincing eight-wicket victory over the Joburg Buffaloes in the final match held at Harare Sports Club on Saturday evening.
Batting first, the Buffaloes got off to a strong start, thanks to Mohammad Hafeez’s explosive innings of 32 off just 13 balls, including two sixes and four fours.
Tom Banton contributed 36 runs off 17 balls, while Yusuf Pathan (25 off 14) and Ravi Bopara (22 off 10) kept the scoring going. The Buffaloes posted a total of 127 for four in their 10 over.
In response, the Qalandars’ reliable batting front-man Tim Siefert took on the Buffaloes’ bowlers right from the start, hitting Blessing Muzarabani for three consecutive sixes in the opening over.
Wellington Masakadza caught Siefert off Usman Shinwari's bowling for 30 off 14 balls in the third over. Andre Fletcher continued the aggressive play, taking the Qalandars to a strong position at 72 for one after five overs.
Noor Ahmad bowled an exceptional over, conceding only four singles, putting the Qalandars under pressure.
With 52 runs needed off the last four overs, Fletcher was dismissed in a similar fashion to Siefert, scoring 29 off 11 balls.
However, Hazratullah Zazai and Asif Ali seized control of the game, hitting boundaries and propelling the Qalandars towards victory.
Zazai scored a rapid 43 off 22 balls, including four sixes and a four, while Ali contributed 21 runs with two sixes.
Their unbroken partnership of 53 runs ensured the Qalandars secured victory with four balls to spare.
Despite Shinwari taking both wickets for a mere 15 runs in his two overs, the Buffaloes were unable to prevent the Qalandars’ triumph.
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