Zimbabwe v Bangladesh - 1st. Test

[Donny]

Zimbabwe won the toss and batted.

Gripper was out for a duck in the second over.

They are now 1/20 in the 6th. over.
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Carlisle is 37 n.o. and Zimb. is 1/58 after 21 overs.

[Donny]

At stumps, Zimbabwe were 4/175 after a rain interrupted first day.

Ebrahim made 65 and Carlisle, 58. Together they added 107 for the second wicket.

Baisya took 2/47 and Rafique, 2/41.

[Donny]

7/309. Irvine made 86.

Rafique has 4/64 and Baisya, 3/101.

[Donny]

Ewing made 71 and Streak, 68. Zimbabwe totalled 441. Rahman took 3/75.

At stumps, Bangladesh is 1/14.

[Donny]

Early wickets have Bangladesh on 4/77. Hossain made 48.

Streak has 2/8.

[Donny]

Bangladesh is 5/191 with Ashraful on 59 n.o.

[GO RUPERT 10]

gee what a game
why isnt it on fox sports
this is bigger than the olympics

[Donny]

Streak (4/44) bowled Ashraful for 98 and t stumps, Bangladesh were 9/313. Hondo took 3/43.

[Donny]

They made 331 and Zimbabwe are 1/39 after 16 and lead by 149.

[The Prototype]

Sounds like a good game, two smaller countries in the Test world fighting it out. Shame it's not on the T.V, would be very good to watch, has Kenya made it to Test level yet? Or are they still only a ODI team?

[Donny]

No, Dave, Kenya is nowhere near a Test unit yet.

Bangladesh are fighing hard. They have 3 wickets today.

Zimbabwe is 3/79 after 30 overs.
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Another wicket. 4/92. The lead is 202.

[Donny]

Zimbabwe declared at 8/242. Irvine scored 74 and Taibu, 58.

At stumps, Bangladesh is on it's knees at 5/25after Hondo took 2/8 and Blignaut (3/12) took a hat trick.

[commonwombat]

Kenya frankly had , and still do have, far better claims to Test status than Bangladesh who were pushed by the sub-continent lobby. Kenya would not be competitive at Test level in the forseeable future but neither do the Bangers.

The ICC really have bungled these matters. Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe were held back for far too long then Bangladesh was promoted with inordinate haste now they have bumbled with Kenya.

[Donny]

Wombat, what ARE Kenya's 'far better claims' for Test status.

Who do they play in four day games ? Who do they play at all, other than one dayers ?

[Donny]

Blignaut's hat-trick puts Zimbabwe close to victory

Wisden Cricinfo staff


A hat-trick from Zimbabwe's Andy Blignaut left Bangladesh reeling on the fourth evening at Harare. By the close they were staring at their 26th defeat in 27 Tests, despite totalling a handy 331 in their first innings, which finished earlier in the day.

Blignaut warmed up for his bowling stint with a rapid 32, including a huge six over long-on, which ushered Zimbabwe to 242 for 8 – and a lead of 352 – before a declaration. Douglas Hondo punched the first holes in Bangladesh's innings, trapping Shahriar Hossain (1) and Habibul Bashar (0) lbw.

And then up stepped Blignaut for his second over, with Bangladesh already in some strife at 14 for 2. His third ball swung in to Hannan Sarkar and pinned him right in front for 10. In came Mohammad Ashraful, whose perky 98 had enlivened Bangladesh's first innings: but this time he squirted his first ball to gully, where the substitute Travis Friend took the catch.

Blignaut produced a fine delivery for the vital ball, swinging it in to Mushfiqur Rahman, who could only manage a thin-edge through to Tatenda Taibu. It was the first hat-trick by a Zimbabwean in a Test.

Bangladesh made it to the close without further loss, by which time they had limped to 21 for 5, but unless the weather intervenes they will be contemplating yet another Test defeat early tomorrow morning.

Earlier Zimbabwe had made a sticky start, losing Trevor Gripper caught behind for 5 in the sixth over. Dion Ebrahim and Stuart Carlisle then dug in, raising the 50 before Ebrahim was caught by Sarkar off Tapash Baisya for a 68-ball 31. Four runs later Grant Flower was gone too, ticking Tapash through to Khaled Mashud for 3, and when Carlisle was run out by Sarkar's direct hit from short midwicket in the 34th over, Zimbabwe were struggling a little at 90 for 4.

But that was as good as it got for Bangladesh. Thanks mainly to an enterprising fifth-wicket partnership of 90 between Taibu, who faced 107 balls for his 58, and Sean Ervine, who cracked 74 from 78 balls, Zimbabwe eventually motored to 242. Both batsmen hit eight fours.

Heath Streak's declaration left Bangladesh needing an unlikely 353 for victory in around 104 overs. But any optimists among the touring party were swiftly shot down by Blignaut's hat-trick heroics.