A good turn from David Warner wasn’t enough to save Australia from a shock loss to Zimbabwe as his wobbly batting line-up was revealed in Townsville on Saturday.
Aaron Finch (5) was pushed back to fifth and what followed was an extremely surprising collapse with only two Australian players in double figures, while the team was rolled for 141 in just 31 Overs.
Warner made an impressive 94 off 96 overs before being dismissed by Ryan Burl, who produced an incredible three-wicket spell in which he took five wickets for just 10 runs.
Steve Smith (1) and Alex Carey (4) both failed to lead the order, while Marcus Stoinis and Ashton Agar offered very little resistance.
Glenn Maxwell, 19, was the only other batsman to score two numbers with a rapid-fire cameo before the back was cleaned up in a fairly straightforward way.
Australia gave Zimbabwe a good start in the innings, with 35-year-old tadiwanashe marumani steadying the ship.
Josh Hazlewood (3/26) played with the ball for the hosts and looked to have set it off, but it was an unbeaten knock from Zimbabwe captain Regis Chakabva (36*) that helped the visitors home with 11 overs remaining.
The victory was the first time Zimbabwe had overcome Australia in Australia, regardless of the Format, and despite losing the series 2-1, they will undoubtedly be very happy to eliminate one of the best teams in the world on home soil.
