Afghanistan 157 and 46 for 3 (Rahmat 18*, Muzarabani 2-17) trail Zimbabwe 243 (Ervine 75, Raza 61, Williams 49, Rashid 4-94) by 40 runs
Zimbabwe and Afghanistan wrestled for the advantage on a fast-paced day of Test cricket in Bulawayo, with the hosts only slightly ahead.
Two-hundred-and-eighty-three runs were scored and 13 wickets fell on the second day where the momentum see-sawed between the two teams, leaving the Test delicately poised.
Resuming from 6 for 0 after bowling Afghanistan out for 157 on a rain-hit first day, Zimbabwe were in early trouble thanks to a top-order collapse. But half-centuries from Craig Ervine (75) and Sikandar Raza (61) and a knock of equal value from an injured Sean Williams (49) saw Zimbabwe take an 86-run lead – one that was significant given the difficult nature of the pitch.
Zimbabwe then removed three Afghanistan batters – with Blessing Muzarabani accounting for two – to end the day 40 runs ahead, while Afghanistan have just seven wickets in hand to try and set up a challenging target.
There was enough in the pitch for bowlers in the morning and Zimbabwe started off showing a lot of discipline. But Joylord Gumbie’s patience didn’t last long as he edged Fareed Ahmad as Abdul Malik took a good low catch at second slip.
Yamin Ahmadzai then had Takudzwanashe Kaitano strangled down the leg side to make it two wickets in two overs.
Just as Ben Curran started to gather momentum with a couple of boundaries off both Afghanistan quicks, Fareed trapped him with front with an in-ducker, with Curran playing down the wrong line.
Afghanistan applied instant pressure on Zimbabwe’s No. 5 Dion Myers, who was promoted because Williams was nursing a back injury from Thursday. With a catching mid-on in place, Myers opted to hit his way out of trouble. He lofted Ahmadzai down the ground for a boundary, but nicked off trying to cut a short and wide one to leave Afghanistan on 41 for 4.
It could have been five down next ball when Fareed drew the outside edge from Raza – who was on seven – only to see a regulation catch go down at first slip. The drop from Riaz Hassan proved expensive. Raza got going with consecutive boundaries off Ahmadzai – an elegant on-drive followed by a cut through point.
Raza and Ervine soon added 71 for the fourth wicket, mostly relying on singles, while Raza came up with the occasional boundary. Raza, playing his first Test since 2021, brought up his fifty by driving Rashid Khan through the covers for two in the second over after lunch.
In the next over, Raza had another slice of luck as he miscued a pull to deep square leg’s left, but Ismat Alam let the ball slip through his hands, much to Fareed’s frustration for the second time in the day.
However, Raza could only add eight more runs to his total as Hashmatullah Shahidi brought Zia-ur-Rahman into the attack. Rashid changed ends, and Raza ended up missing a sweep the first ball he faced against the left-arm spinner.
Rashid also looked sharper from the other end, and soon had Brian Bennett caught behind off the inside edge with a wrong’un. It did the trick again for Rashid as he knocked over Newman Nyamhuri.
Zimbabwe were still ten runs behind Afghanistan’s first-innings total and Williams, coming out to bat at No. 9, and Ervine pulled Rashid and Ahmadzai respectively for two boundaries in the next two overs to take Zimbabwe into the lead.
With Williams struggling with his back, Ahmadzai targeted him with short balls and nearly created a caught-and-bowled opportunity in the 52nd over, but the ball fell short. One ball later, Williams took on another short ball and crashed it through midwicket, but also went down on a knee holding his back in the process.
Williams then decided to go on the attack, lofting Rashid over mid-on before driving Ahmadzai past mid-off twice in an over. In Ahmadzai’s next over, Williams slogged him for back-to-back boundaries. Ervine, who was happy to play second fiddle at the other end, reached his half-century in the final over before tea.
Zimbabwe started positively in the final session, with Williams hitting Zia over mid-off for his fourth boundary in the second over after tea. But in the next over, Rashid got a wrong’un to spin away as Williams looked to turn it leg side. There was barely any audible noise but Rashid was loud in his appeal for caught behind. The umpire however, was unconvinced, but Williams, batting on 49, walked.
“Obviously the medical staff have been working really hard to get him on the park today, they did a magnificent job there, and we’re going to have to continue to do that,” Zimbabwe coach Justin Sammons spoke after the day’s play about Williams’ back issue.
“It’s going to be tough, he’s in a lot of pain, but he showed tremendous courage to go out there and he showed what he’s about and what it means to him to play for Zimbabwe. You can see that in the way he goes about his business.
“I can’t look too far ahead, obviously we take it step by step with him. We’re just going to try to get him into the best physical state we can as we move forward in this Test.”
Ervine tried to the strike once play resumed after a brief rain break, but Ngarava convinced his captain to take a single off the second ball of the 71st over but was knocked over by an Ahmadzai length ball that stayed low.
Ervine took Rashid on in the next over, first coming down the pitch to loft him down the ground and then slogging him over square leg for back-to-back sixes.
However, another attempt at a slog sweep in Rashid’s next over saw Ervine hole out at deep-backward square leg. Zimbabwe now had an 86-run first-innings lead.
Afghanistan’s second innings had a frantic start. Abdul Malik flashed at a full delivery and edged it to gully where Curran dropped him, before a vociferous appeal for caught behind from Ngarava, who got the ball close to Malik’s outside edge, was turned down.
In the next over, Muzarabani drew a leading edge from Malik, with the ball popping to mid-on. In the eighth over, Muzarabani struck again, when he had Hassan Riaz edging behind to make it 18 for 2.
Shahidi and Rahmat Shah, double-centurions in the last match, then tried to stave off the bowlers, but Raza gave Zimbabwe a late boost with a lovely offbreak that drifted in to pitch on middle before turning away past the outside edge and crashing into off stump, removing the Afghanistan captain in the penultimate over of the day.
