On Sunday, April 20, Zimbabwe’s effort on Day 1 of the first Test match against Bangladesh at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium was outstanding.
Against Craig Ervine and company, Najmul Hossain Shanto chose to bat first after winning the toss. Mahmudul Hasan and Shadman Islam Joy added 31 runs while navigating the opening eight overs with no difficulty. But Victor Nyauchi quickly fired them one after the other.
Together, Mominul Haque and Shanto led their squad to the lunch break by combining aggression and caution. A frustrating rainstorm caused the second session to start later than planned.
But when play resumed, Zimbabwe exploded, with Richard Ngarava and Blessing Muzarabani bowling incisive periods.
The tourists’ breakthrough came when the former dismissed Shanto, who scored 40 off 69 balls. The breakup of the 66-run collaboration provided the Zimbabweans a lot of momentum.
The surface gave the pacers and spinners a fair amount of help, and wickets continued to fall at regular intervals. Not long after he turned fifty, Mominul left. Wicketkeeper Nyasha Mayavo dropped the former Bangladesh Test captain on 0 and he went on to hit 56 off 105 balls.
Before the hosts were bowled out for 191, Jaker Ali and Hasan Mahmud contributed some vital runs down the order. Wellington Masakadza and Muzarabani both claimed three wickets. Nyauchi and Wessly Madhevere, meanwhile, each took two wickets. Ngarava was unable to open his account despite bowling economically.
Ben Curran and Brian Bennett started Zimbabwe’s innings. As he attacked the bowlers from Bangladesh, the former took a combative stance. Curran, however, was content to wait in the centre. After Zimbabwe quickly reached 67/0 in 14.1 overs, the umpires determined it was appropriate to remove the players from the pitch after examining the light reading.
Ervine, the captain of Zimbabwe, will be pleased with the way Day 1 went. Given that they would have to bat last in the Test match, the visitors will try to bat long on Day 2 and establish a high first-innings total.
India
