GUWAHATI (India), March 19: Dinesh Mongia hammered an unbeaten 159 for a maiden one-day hundred as India beat Zimbabwe by 101 runs to win their series 3-2 Tuesday.

The 24-year-old Mongia, yet to play in Test cricket, struck 17 fours and a six in his 147-ball knock and shared in an explosive 158-run fifth-wicket stand with Yuvraj Singh, who cracked 75 off 52 balls as India piled up 333 for six after electing to bat.

Zimbabwe, docked two overs for a slow over rate, were bowled out for 232 in 42.1 overs.

The visitors were in with a slim chance till the 23rd over when, on 111 for one, they lost three wickets for as many runs.

Grant Flower fought a losing battle, top-scoring with 48 and adding 84 for the sixth wicket with Heath Streak (39) but Zimbabwe lost their last five wickets for just five runs after Flower’s departure.

Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh grabbed four wickets for 33 and left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan three for 29.

India had been trailing 2-1 in the series before Yuvraj, with 80 from 60 deliveries, helped them to a five-wicket win at Hyderabad last week.

India had lost two wickets for eight runs, making it 157 for four, before the left-handers Mongia and Yuvraj came together in the 31st over.

Opener Mongia, with just one half-century from his previous 14 one-dayers, soon reached three figures off 121 balls, driving paceman Travis Friend through the covers for his 11th boundary.

The 20-year-old Yuvraj, also yet to feature at test level, flicked seamer Gary Brent to mid-wicket for four before cutting paceman Travis Friend to point for a boundary and raising his 50 with a couple to square-leg.

The two batsmen underlined their supremacy near the end of the innings, Yuvraj hitting three sixes as 111 runs were amassed in eight overs.

That propelled India to their highest total against Zimbabwe, beating the 319 at Mohali earlier in the series.

Yuvraj was finally out driving off-spinner Douglas Marillier straight to Friend at long-on.

India had started slowly, scoring only 18 runs from the first seven overs before skipper Saurav Ganguly (28) hammered medium-pacer Douglas Hondo for two fours to open the floodgates.

Vangipurappu Laxman was run out for 16 and Dravid was bowled through the gate by Hondo for 26, playing across the line.

Zimbabwe started their reply confidently with in-form left-hander Alistair Campbell leading the way.

He lofted medium-pacer Ajit Agarkar over cover and cut left-arm paceman Zaheer for a four to the third-man fence before being caught at mid-off for 31 off 38 balls while trying to chip Khan over the in-field.

Wickets started to tumble once pinch-hitter Friend was stumped by wicket-keeper Ajay Ratra while giving Harbhajan the charge.

Harbhajan struck again, having Andy Flower loft a drive to wide long-off where Zaheer grabbed a tumbling catch diving backwards, and Ganguly then bowled Ebrahim round his legs.

Grant Flower and Streak collected runs rapidly but the asking rate had climbed beyond 11 runs an over when Zaheer bowled Flower with a perfect yorker to trigger the final collapse.