Online Reporter
Brandon Moyo,Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE senior men’s national cricket team, the Chevrons, have put behind them a string of poor results in red-ball cricket as they beat Afghanistan by an innings and 73 runs in a one-off Test match at Harare Sports Club on Wednesday.
The win is Zimbabwe’s largest margin of victory in Tests (by an innings) and their third overall win by an innings. The Chevrons only needed one and a half sessions on day three to wrap things up.
It was the Chevrons’ first home Test win in 12 years, having last won against Pakistan in 2013. This was also their second Test match win of the year.
A maiden Test five-for, on day three, from Richard Ngarava – complementing Bradley Evans’ maiden Test five-for in the first innings and Ben Curran’s century – propelled the team to a historic win.
Zimbabwe dominated the match from the first day, winning the toss and electing to field first where they bowled out their opponents for 127 runs courtesy of an Evans five-for. Curran scored a superb century to lead Zimbabwe to 359. And then, it was a Ngarava show with the ball on Wednesday morning, calming five scalps to bowl out the visitors for 159 runs.
Day three resumed with Afghanistan on 34/1 trailing by 198 runs. They had lost Abdul Malik to Ngarava just before stumps on day two.
Tanaka Chivanga gave Zimbabwe the much needed early breakthrough inside the first minutes of the third day when he had Rahmanullah Gurbaz caught behind for nine runs. Ngarava went on to get the dangerous Ibrahim Zadran for 42 runs and the skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi for seven runs.
At that stage, Afghanistan were in trouble on 60/4. There was then a 49 runs fifth wicket partnership between Bahir Shah and Asfar Zazai which was broken by Blessing Muzarabani. The lanky fast bowler had Shah caught for 32 runs and from there, wickets continued to tumble for the visitors.
Chivanga got Zazai for 18 runs and Ngarava went on to complete his five-wicket haul when he got Ismat Alam and Sharafuddin Ashraf for 16 and nine runs respectively. Muzarabani got the last two wickets of Khalil Gurbaz and Ziaur Rahman to give Zimbabwe the much needed win.
Ngarava finished with career best figures of 5/37 in 13 overs in the second innings, having gone wicketless in the first, while Muzarabani (in the second innings) claimed 3/48 in 12 overs, having claimed 3/47 in the first innings. Chivanga took 2/40 in the second innings, following his 1/29 in the first.
Evans, in the first innings, finished with career best figures of 5/22 in 9.3 overs.
For his 121 runs off 256 balls, Curran was named player of the match.
– @brandon_malvin
