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Sports Club yesterday.
The hosts could not have asked for a better return to the longer version of the game after a six-year absence and a win over the sub-continent side put aside most of the doubt as Zimbabwe showed their capabilities.
It was a commanding all round performance by Zimbabwe that gave them the much-needed win, with a strong bowling attack and an equally impressive performance with the bat.
But it was the heavy performance by the Zimbabwe bowlers on day five of the Test match that presented Zimbabwe with the perfect reason to celebrate soon after lunch.
Elton Chigumbura and Christopher Mpofu caused much of the damage to the Bangladesh defence, taking most of the wickets to support Kyle Jarvis and Brian Vitori’s earlier play.
It was with the first 15 balls after lunch that Zimbabwe claimed their victory after a good performance with the ball in the morning session.
With the pitch looking good for batting, the Zimbabwe attack put a lot of pressure on the tourists and made sure they were not able to use the conditions to their advantage.
Needing 263 runs to win with seven wickets in hand on the final day of play, Bangladesh found themselves with a lot of pressure and were forced to make punishable shots
Zimbabwe made sure none on the Bangladesh defence reached half a century and it was Abdur Razzak’s 43 that became the highest score.
But this was only on day four of the match and when Mpofu claimed the big one so early, it became evident the Zimbabweans were heading for victory.
However, this is not to say Zimbabwe only came to life in the final two days of the game as they had set all the ground work suitable for a win since the Test match started on Thursday.
The Brandon Taylor-led side had done most of the work from the beginning of the game with historic centuries from Hamilton Masakadza and Taylor while debutante Brian Vitori led the bowling attack.
Mohammad Ashraful (39) was the second highest scorer and at the beginning of the game yesterday, it seemed he was going to give Zimbabwe some problems but he failed to last the distance.
Taking advantage of wayward balls, he exhibited mildness at the crease showing the same character as in the first innings while his partner Mushfiqur Rahim (28) showed some level of composure. But the worst was yet to come for the Bangladesh defence and it all started with Mahmudullah’s dismissal off a Mpofu delivery – caught behind by former captain Taibu.
Then the tourists lost three wickets in just 12 balls, scoring a paltry seven runs in the process after Mahmudullah tried to cut Mpofu but he was very unfortunate to be caught behind.
It only took five more balls before Shakib Al Hasan (6) was caught by Taylor at second slip off a Chigumbura delivery while Mushfiqur Rahim (28), also off another Mpofu ball, left Bangladesh in deep trouble after he was caught by Craig Ervine.
It was from this moment that Zimbabwe could clearly see victory ahead but it seemed they became a bit complacent and slowed down the game as they allowed Razzak to strike at will.
His 43 comprised of five fours off a Mpofu over and three sixes off Raymond Price but his fun on the crease came to an end when Chigumbura came from around the wicket to kill the game as a contest.
His 43 came off only 17 balls, with five fours and three sixes setting up Bangladesh at 224 for eight with only the tail left.
And it was in the first three overs after lunch that Zimbabwe capped a perfect return to Test cricket when Jarvis struck with the first ball, bowling Shafiul.
Zimbabwe made it more difficult for Bangladesh as they tried to get the last wicket as early as possible, as they could not wait to celebrate their win over the Tigers.
It was really looking tough for the Tigers and they were left with no option with six slips for Robiul Islam who, however, survived a confident lbw shout at first.
But he stood to the challenge with two fours but it was in sight that he was not going to last longer and Jarvis claimed his fourth wicket of the innings after he trapped Robiul lbw with a ball.
Umpire Kumar Dharmasena raised his finger and there was nothing left for Zimbabwe other than to celebrate.
The result was of major significance to Zimbabwe on their return to Test cricket after a self-imposed six year absence from the game, and the players cracked open the champagne bottles in celebration as they made their way off the field.
“We feel totally justified now at returning to Tests,” said Taylor, who was named man-of-the match in his first Test as captain after following up his first innings 71 with 105 not out in the second innings.
“It has been a long, hard haul. I believe we won mainly because we have worked so hard during the last 12 months.
“The fact is we wanted to win more than Bangladesh did. Our team really put themselves on the line. We had some setbacks, but we had the strength to recover,” continued Taylor, who becomes only the seventh player in cricket history to score a century in his first Test as captain.
This victory may have been recorded against the lowest-ranked Test-playing nation, but Zimbabwe can now look forward to further one-off Test matches at home to Pakistan next month and in New Zealand in the New Year.
Bangladesh began the day on 112 for three, still chasing another 263 for victory, and they retained some hope of pulling off a stunning fightback on a wicket that remained ideal for batting.
However, their task began to look like an impossible one when Mohammad Ashraful was bowled by Brian Vitori for 39.
Mushfiqur Rahim also offered some resistance before being caught at square leg by Craig Ervine off Chris Mpofu, who ended with figures of three for 51 from ten overs.
The only other score of note was a stunning knock of 43 off just 17 balls by Abdur Razzak, including an incredible 19 from one Ray Price over, but Bangladeshi captain Shakib Al Hasan accepted that the best team won.
“We were outplayed in both bowling and batting departments, partly because we would have preferred to have had a bit more time to prepare after arriving in Harare,” he said.
“Nonetheless, I was disappointed with our performance overall. I’m sure it will be very different in the ODI series.”
Jarvis was the pick of the Zimbabwe attack. He dismissed Islam to clinch the match and finish with figures of four for 61 from 16.3 overs.
Zimbabwe and Bangladesh now play a series of five ODIs, with the first coming at Harare Sports Club on Friday.
Scorecard
Zimbabwe 1st innings: 370 (Masakadza 104, Sibanda 78, Taylor 71, Al Hassan 3-62, Hossain 3-84).
Bangladesh 1st innings: 287 (Ashraful 73, S. Al Hassan 68, S. Hafeez 50, Vitori 4-66).
Zimbabwe 2nd innings: 291-5 declared (Taylor 105 n.o., Taibu 59) .
Bangladesh 2nd innings (overnight 112-3)
Iqbal b Mpofu 43
Kayes c Taibu b Jarvis 31
Nafeez b Jarvis 9
Ashraful v Vitori 39
Rahim c Ervine b Mpofu 28
Mahmudullah c Taibu b Mpofu 11
Al Hassan c Taylor b Chigumbura 6
Razzak b Chigumbura 43
S. Islam b Jarvis 7
Hossain not out 8
R. Islam lbw b Jarvis 12
Extras (4b, 2lb, 1nb) 7
Total (57.3 overs, 272 mins) 244
F-o-W: 1-65 (Iqbal), 2-87 (Kayes), 3-102 (Nafeez), 4-140 (Ashraful), 5-167 Mahmudullah, 6-174 (Shakib Al Hasan), 7-174 (Mushfiqur Rahim), 8-224 (Abdur Razzak), 9-228 (S. Islam), 10-244 (R. Islam)
Bowling: Vitori 14-1-56-1; Jarvis 16.3-4-61-4; Chigumbura 15-3-50-2; Mpofu 10-0-51-3 (1nb); Price 2-0-20-0.
Zimbabwe: Vusi Sibanda, Timotenda Mawoyo, Hamilton Masakadza, Brendan Taylor (capt), Craig Ervine, Tatenda Taibu, Elton Chigumbura, Raymond Price, Ky;e Jarvis, Brian Vitori, Christopher Mpofu
Online Reporter