ZIMBABWE delivered Australia a wake-up call after taking two wickets in the final over to seal a one-run win in their warm-up in St Lucia.
Australia were on track chasing Zimbabwe’s 173 for 7 when David Warner smashed 72 off 49 and captain Michael Clarke took them to the verge of victory with 49 from 42.
(Scores: Zimbabwe 173 for 7 (Chigumbura 76, Johnson 4-23) beat Australia 172 for 7 (Clarke 49) by 1 run)
Australia wanted 13 from the final over but the task became too difficult when Clarke was bowled from the second-last ball by Chris Mpofu.
Mitchell Johnson was then run-out from a wide and Brett Lee could only manage a bye from the final delivery. It was a practice game but it was Australia’s first T20 defeat of the season and it will worry them that they lost so much momentum at the vital stages of the chase.
“Obviously we would have liked to have won,” Johnson said. “When you come into these practice games you want to be pretty close to your best. It won’t be a setback. It’s disappointing to lose in a practice match but we’ve just got to keep going forward.”
Zimbabwe had relied on Elton Chigumbura to lift them after they were 36 for 4 in the sixth over. Chigumbura quickly provided some substance as he blasted six sixes and five fours in his 76 off 33 balls. Craig Ervine chipped in with a valuable 39 in the stand of 114 that took the side to safety.
Lee made an encouraging comeback from his broken thumb with 1 for 13 off four and Johnson led the figures with 4 for 23. Life was not as rosy for Nathan Hauritz, Daniel Christian and Shane Watson, who all went at 12 or more an over.
The Australians, who left out Shaun Tait and Cameron White, play a Windward Islands XI tomorrow in their last chance to fire before their opening match of the tournament against Pakistan on Sunday.
Zimbabwe face Sri Lanka on Monday in Guyana before running into New Zealand. (Cricinfo)