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Brandon Moyo, brandonmalvin9@gmail.com
ZIMBABWE Test captain, Craig Ervine, praised his team for playing positive cricket after drawing against Afghanistan in the Boxing Day Test match that was played at Queens Sports Club.
Records were shattered in the game where both Zimbabwe and Afghanistan scored their highest Test scores on a wicket that offered nothing to the bowlers.
The Chevrons batting first, scored 586 runs in the first innings before Afghanistan responded with 699.
Ervine and his Afghanistan counterpart Hashmatullah Shahidi decided to shake hands on day five with the Chevrons on 142/4.
Ervine was full of praise for his team’s good performance.
“The way the guys batted was very good. The intent was there. There are bad balls that the guys put away so there was never really a moment where we felt like guys were getting lazy on the field. We fielded for 200 overs and today we saw Sean Williams diving.
“The energy that everybody had throughout the five days was exceptional. And the bowlers showed a lot of patience on a surface that didn’t offer a great deal. A lot of credit has to go to them. Blessing Muzarabani was leading from the front, bowling 20-odd overs for 52 runs was outstanding,” said Ervine.
The skipper also showered 21-year-old Brian Bennett who picked up five wickets and scored a 100 runs.
“There’s a lot of positives to take out. Brian Bennett getting a hundred in his second Test, the way he batted was really good. The guys batted really well, kept things nice and simple, keeping the good ball out and put the bad ball away,” he said.
Zimbabwe played day five without Blessing Muzarabani and Newman Nyamhuri.
Ervine said the fast bowling duo was rested for the final day as they were unwell and they had to try and manage them for the New Year’s Day Test.
“They are all fine. Blessing was struggling with a bit of flu and a bit of dizziness so we didn’t want to push them too much, especially knowing that we have two days between now and the next Test match.
Newman was struggling with his stomach for a few days.
“Bowling out there really takes so much energy and when you’re not 100 percent fit, it drains a lot of energy from you. We thought those guys may just as well rest and make sure that when it comes the next Test they are fresh and energetic,” said Ervine.
He also confirmed that Richard Ngarava, who was rested for the Boxing Day Test will be available for the second one.
“Richard Ngarava will be back for the second Test and the guys that played the first Test, over the next day or two, have to manage how they recover and we will make that decision on the match day,” said Ervine.
Prior to the recently ended game, which was a draw, the country had hosted only one Boxing Day Test, when Zimbabwe faced England in 1996 in a drawn match severely affected by rain at Harare Sports Club.
Since then, Zimbabwe’s only other Boxing Day Tests have been played away from home — against New Zealand in Wellington in 2000 and against South Africa in the inaugural pink-ball, day-night, four-day Test in Port Elizabeth in 2017.
Zimbabwe also played Sri Lanka in a Test that started on December 27, 2001, in Colombo.
Zimbabwe has never played a New Year’s Test, either at home or abroad.
This will be their first. —@brandon_malvin
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