Zimbabwe hosted West Indies at Bulawayo for a series of 2 test matches, where former captain Brendan Taylor made a comeback to the squad. The hosts haven’t had much of test exposure but they played some good cricket; they lost the 1st test by 117 runs but fought well to draw the 2nd test match.
While there were contributions from all eleven in the side, two in particular can take credit for being able to draw this game – Hamilton Masakadza, who scored his 5th test century and 2nd against West Indies; and Sikandar Raza, who picked up his first 5-wicket haul in his career, to go with two fifties in the match.
Raza will be particularly proud of his efforts, as he became the first Zimbabwean player to get two fifties and a fifer in a test match on Day 4. He then went on to achieve another major milestone on Day 5, becoming only the second player in test history to get two scores of 80+ and a fifer in a test match. The first was Jacques Kallis against West Indies way back in 1999.
Match scorecard:
Zimbabwe 1st innings – 326 all out
- Hamilton Masakadza 147(240)
- Sikandar Raza 80(147)
- K. Roach 3/44
West Indies 1st innings – 448 all out
- Jason Holder 110(198)
- Shane Dowrich 103(232)
- S. Raza 5/99
Zimbabwe 2nd innings – 301/7 decl.
- Sikandar Raza 89(203)
- Regis Chakabva 71(192)*
- Shannon Gabriel 2/34
Result: Match drawn (Zimbabwe’s first drawn test match since 2005)
MOM: Sikandar Raza
MOS: Devendra Bishoo
Raza missed getting to well deserved centuries in both innings, but he will be very happy with his overall performance in this game, after a quiet 1st test match. Read Scoops once spoke to Raza and he said, “I am a batsman who can bowl.” However, I’m now pretty sure that he has established himself as a world class all-rounder.
Zimbabwe fought hard to keep their wickets intact on the final day of the 2nd test, after having conceded a 122-run lead in the 1st innings. I wasn’t a fan of their approach on the final day, having got into an extremely defensive mindset, but it was still a phenomenal effort by them, to secure a draw.
The hosts ultimately lose the series 1-0, but there are a lot of positives they can draw from this series. Raza’s all round abilities, Masakadza’s shot making at the top, the lower order’s resistance with the bat, and Cremer’s good captaincy will all be talking points.
Their 8th wicket blockathon partnership was something you don’t get to see very often in cricket, with the two having batted for over 48 overs together, but having scored just 91 runs. However, their goal of saving the test match was accomplished and that’s what matters.
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