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ROY KAIA fell just two runs short of what would have been a memorable half century, on début, on the first day, of the first Test, at Harare Sports Club yesterday.
But, it was the dominant Pakistan, powered by their impressive fast bowlers, who took control.
At stumps, the visitors were 103-0, just 73 runs behind, after their openers Abdi Ali and Imran Butt, gave their team a solid foundation.
In the end, it was easy to forget Kaia had done enough to give Zimbabwe’s first-innings total a modicum of respectability, with a fine knock of 48, on a day which belonged to the experienced visitors.
Their magnificent pace bowling pair of Shaheen Afridi and Hasan Ali destroyed the Chevrons’ inexperienced batting line-up, dismissing the hosts for 176, in their first innings.
Only three of Zimbabwe’s players played in as many as 10 Test matches, with Kaia, Milton Shumba and Richard Ngarava, making their début yesterday.
Zimbabwe won the toss and decided to bat, but a disastrous session before lunch took away any advantage they may have gained from this.
Prince Masvaure and Kevin Kasuza opened the innings against the bowling of Afridi and Hasan Ali, who bowled superbly and gave the batsmen a very testing time.
Afridi’s first ball of the match was a brilliant delivery that swung in, moved away and just missed the edge of Masvaure’s bat.
There was an appeal for a catch behind but Langton Rusere, who became Africa’s first black umpire to stand in a Test match, correctly turned it down.
In the second over, with still no run on the board, Kasuza saw a delivery from Ali crash into his bat, skid off the ground and unluckily bounce back onto the stumps.
Masvaure survived for 40 minutes, to score 11, when he was undone by extra bounce from a ball from Afridi, and edged a catch to second slip; 18 for two.
With Brendan Taylor joining Tarisai Musakanda, the batting became bogged down and seven successive maiden overs ensued.
Musakanda played a fine slow-sweep for six, when Nauman Ali came on to bowl, but the left-arm spinner got his revenge with an arm ball that bowled him through the gap, for 14.
Without addition to the score, the home side lost the key wicket of captain Taylor, who played a loose stroke outside the off stump, and was caught at third slip for five.
With debutantes Shumba and Kaia, on the crease, the omens did not look good for Zimbabwe but the duo handled the pressure with maturity.
Kaia got off the mark with a good cover drive for four, and the pair safely through to the lunch break, when they had almost doubled the score to 59 for four — Shumba then had 13 and Kaia 16.
Shumba began confidently after lunch, and hit Afridi for 10 runs in one over, including an off-drive and a glide to leg for four each.
Batting conditions were easier now, though, as the bowlers were no longer able to swing the ball.
A straight drive for four from Shumba brought up the 50 partnership, a major landmark for Zimbabwe after such a bad start.
When he had made 27, though, Shumba was dropped in the slips by Babar Azam off the bowling of Ashraf.
He did not survive for long, though, as in the following over he called Kaia for a risky single, was sent back and run out at the bowler’s end.
It was a sad ending to a very promising and vital innings of 27 off 50 balls, and Zimbabwe were now 89-5 after a fighting partnership of 59.
Regis Chakabva came in and played well with Kaia, who continued to play his strokes.
Kaia failed to get to his fifty on his début when, on 48, Ali sent him three successive short balls, tempting him to hook, and then produced a superb yorker that trapped him lbw, with the score now 124 for six.
He faced 94 balls, and hit seven fours, in what was a very impressive innings, especially considering the dire situation that met him, when he went in.
In his next over, Ali struck again, getting some reverse swing to move the ball away from Chakabva (19), who edged a catch to the keeper; 127 for seven.
Once again Zimbabwe were guilty of losing their wickets in pairs.
Scores
Zimbabwe: 176 all out in 59.1 overs (Roy Kaia 48, Donald Tiripano 28*, Milton Shumba 27; Shaheen Shah Afridi 4/43, Hasan Ali 4/53, Nauman Ali 1/29)
Pakistan: 103-0 in 30 overs (Abid Ali 56*, Imran Butt 43*) — Zimcricket/Sports Reporter
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