Ireland Under 19s finished their Zimbabwe tour on a high and denied the hosts a clean sweep in the five-match YODI series in Harare.

Captain Olly Riley won the game with back to back boundaries, leaving Adam Leckey stranded on 91 not out as Ireland chased down their victory target of 204 with 16 balls to spare.

Ireland lost three wickets in the powerplay and when Seb Dijkstra followed, the visitors were in a spot of bother at 83 for four. But Leckey, as has been a feature of the tour, was standing firm and brought up a 59-ball 50, with only four boundaries. He received excellent support from Ethan Marshall in what proved a match-winning partnership of 84.

Marshall was leg before for 41 with the total on 167 and although Dan Murray was bowled 11 runs later, Ireland were not to be denied with Leckey taking his aggregate for the series to 323 runs at an average of 107.7. This was the Civil Service North all-rounder’s fourth half century of the tour, with his last 179 runs undefeated.

It was Riley and Ruben Wilson who had impressed at the start of the day when play got under way 75 minutes late – the game reduced to 45 overs - and they were unlucky not to take  more than one wicket with the new balls as they repeatedly beat the bat in helpful conditions.

It was seven overs before the ball reached the boundary but although Marshall then picked up a second wicket, Dhrum Patel and Takudzwa Makoni put on 83 for the third wicket. It was to be Zimbabwe’s peak because after Alex Armstrong broke the partnership, Thomas Ford took two quick wickets to reduce the home side to 136 for five.

Ireland had to wait another nine overs before Dan Murray picked up Ireland’s sixth wicket but Wilson, who was denied an early wicket because he overstepped, wrapped up the innings with one of the more unusual hat-tricks.

He took the eighth and ninth wickets with the fourth and fifth balls of his seventh over but the umpires miscounted and called ‘over’ so he had to watch Dan Murray bowl the next over. When the Pembroke man failed to take a wicket, Wilson got his chance and with the first ball of the 43^rd over he bowled Brandon Ndiweni for a belated hat-trick.