Zimbabwe delivered feather blows to the Middle Eastern lions of the Afghanistan cricket team by an innings and 73 runs at Harare Sports Club on Wednesday afternoon. They did it with a great two days to spare. The changes occasioned such a win in the early and late 90s and the 2000s have only been tri-miraculous, to date. Zimbabwe was scratched for victory by an innings and 73 runs only twice before: against Pakistan in 1995 and against Bangladesh in 2001. The victory also meant Zimbabwe's first Test triumph in Harare after a win against Pakistan by a mere 24 runs in 2013.
Upon winning the toss, Afghanistan went in to bat first and could only manage a dismal total of 127 runs. Zimbabwe, in their turn, made 359, Ben Curran thus scoring 121, which was his first Test century, the man of the match award leading to the best player of the match title and thus a commanding 232-run first innings lead.
Dominant bowling performance by Zimbabwe secures victory
In their second innings, Afghanistan struggled once again, being dismissed for 159, with only Ibrahim Zadran (42) and Bahir Shah (32) showing some resistance. Zimbabwe’s bowlers shone, with Brad Evans claiming five wickets in the first Afghan innings, while Richard Ngarava starred in the second with figures of 5 for 37, marking his first five-wicket haul in Test cricket.
Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine praised his side, saying, “It is a nice end to a tough year of Test cricket for us. The boys put in a brilliant effort with the bat and the bowlers were outstanding. Brad and Richie stepped up when it mattered.” Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi acknowledged Zimbabwe’s superiority, adding, “We let ourselves down as a team, and the conditions supported the fast bowlers.”
The only silver lining for Afghanistan was debutant seamer Ziaur Rahman, who impressed by taking seven wickets in the match. Zimbabwe’s emphatic win ends a challenging year of Tests, demonstrating resilience and dominance over a struggling Afghan side.
