Ellina Mhlanga in LIVERPOOL, United Kingdom

ZIMBABWE’S remarkable performance at the ongoing Vitality Netball World Cup suffered another dent yesterday when they lost 43-59 to Malawi at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool on Thursday.

Zimbabwe started off to a good start in the early minutes of the first quarter leading by three goal at some point before Malawi overturned the score to take a 12-8 lead by the end of the quarter. With Zimbabwe making unforced errors and losing possession more often Malawi carried their dominance into the second stanza and were up 28-18 by half time.

They continued to enjoy the upper hand throughout to claim a 59-43 victory over Zimbabwe. Despite the defeat Zimbabwe are still in the run for the top six finish as they will take on the third-placed team from Group G in a play-off match on Friday. The other play-off will see Group F’s third-placed Malawi facing Group G’s fourth placed side.

The winners will then play for fifth and sixth position while the losers play for seventh and eighth place.