Paul Stirling was left rueing what could have been as opener Brian Bennett scored a magnificent 169 to set Zimbabwe on the way to a 49-run victory over Ireland in the first of a three-match one-day international series in Harare.

“Congrats to Brian, that was an outstanding knock,” skipper Stirling said. “We gave him a chance or two and he made us pay.”

Bennett dominated the home side’s innings, striking 20 fours and three maximums, from 163 balls faced, before he was caught in the deep off Graeme Hume. 

The Boys in Green lost Andy Balbirnie to the first ball of the reply but then made a decent fist of chasing 300 to win with six batsmen reaching 30, although none bettered Curtis Campher’s 44 before the innings ended on 250.

Stirling set the tone with a lively 32 from 28 balls, including two sixes, then Harry Tector shared partnerships of 54 with Campher and 46 with Lorcan Tucker to build a solid platform.

At 151-3 after 30 overs, a tight finish looked on, only for Tucker to chop onto his stumps for 31 and, the ball after he had struck a glorious first four down the ground, Tector fell for 39, attempting a reverse sweep which was caught at short third man.

Andy McBrine and George Dockrell added 73 for the seventh wicket, and reduced the ask to 60 from six overs, but both then fell in the space of four balls and the game was up.

“The wicket was as good as it gets in Harare,” Stirling said. “We bat deep and we looked to give ourselves a chance but they put the squeeze on between overs 30 and 40 in both innings.

“I felt 50 runs was the difference, and the result reflects that.”

Stirling will be worried about the form of Josh Little who suffered a nightmare return to the side in his first ODI for 14 months.

The superstar paceman conceded 35 runs from his three powerplay overs, as Zimbabwe rattled up a massive 299-5.

Little is valued for his wicket-taking and was unlucky to see a fast edge fly past second slip and a lofted drive just evade mid-off but he bowled too wide and full, and a succession of half-volleys were smashed repeatedly to the unprotected cover boundary.

Meanwhile, Barry McCarthy has returned to Ireland for treatment of an abdominal injury he suffered in the Test match that ended on Monday. He has been replaced in the squad by Fionn Hand and Jordan Neill.