Zimbabwe defeated Bangladesh by 335 runs in the first Test in Harare on Saturday. Brendan Taylor's twin centuries and skillful swing and seam bowling finished off the game inside four days, as Zimbabwe took a 1-0 lead in the two-match series.
The game ended when Kyle Jarvis took a magnificent catch at deep fine-leg to give Graeme Cremer his fourth wicket, that of Robiul Islam, to bowl out Bangladesh for just 147. Earlier in the day, Zimbabwe declared their second innings on 227 for 7, setting Bangladesh an improbable 483.
Bangladesh's top order wilted against seam for the second time in the match and the hosts were just four wickets away from taking a 1-0 lead at tea in Harare. The second session on the fourth day turned out to be even better for Zimbabwe, having removed four more wickets, after setting Bangladesh an improbable 483.
Mohammad Ashraful's dim-witted run-out close to the tea break rounded off a forgettable session for the visitors. Graeme Cremer spun one past Ashraful's bat and wicketkeeper Richmond Mutumbami's gloves, but Brendan Taylor saved the ball at slip. Ashraful, thinking it had beaten Taylor, went off for a run and was duly run out amid loud laughter among the Zimbabweans, getting out after making a start.
Shahriar Nafees' aggressive approach in Test cricket has been to satiate his need to reach a fifty quickly. But he has inadvertently given the bowlers a greater opportunity to beat his bat. Against Kyle Jarvis, his greed got the better of him. After scoring two consecutive boundaries, he created a big gap between bat and pad, played all over a full delivery from Kyle Jarvis and lost his off stump.
After the lunch break, Ashraful hardly got out of his self-induced shell as he looked to drag the game for as long as possible. Mahmudullah at the other end went after the bowling, and soon enough, perished. Whether he had seen substitute Sean Williams stationed at deep square-leg cannot be a valid point for a batsman at this level of cricket, but his innocuous pull shot said much about his muddled mindset. His dismissal again triggered a collapse as Shakib Al Hasan and Captain Mushfiqur Rahim fell soon after. Similar to the first innings, Shakib was caught at gully but this time he wasn't fending. He has a unique way of playing a late cut which he guides past gully and point, but this time he couldn't keep the Jarvis delivery down.
Luck too wasn't on Bangladesh's side as two of the dismissals showed. Jahurul Islam was given out caught behind when the ball had appeared to flick his shirt on the way to the wicketkeeper Mutumbami. A prolonged appeal from the slips created enough pressure on the umpire Tony Hill.
Mushfiqur was brilliantly caught at second slip by Taylor, who jumped to his right and grabbed it one-handed. The Bangladesh captain's dismal Test is in far contrast to his opposite number.
Taylor started the day on 81, and took only 19 more balls to score his second century in the Test, bouncing back after a disappointing West Indies tour. He is now the first Zimbabwean captain to have achieved that feat, and the third overall after Andy and Grant Flower. He had batted more than four hours for this century, hitting five fours and two straight sixes. He dabbed the ball past point for three runs to reach the century, roared and exchanged high-fives with Keegan Meth.
