Rahmat Shah's ton helps Afghanistan gain substantial lead over Zimbabwe on Day 3 of second Test

Rahmat Shah resumed the day's play alongside nightwatcher, Zia-ur-Rehman. Rahmat's first run of the day came after playing out 19 deliveries with the utmost of vigilance. From the looks of it, it was quite evident that he had put a huge price on his wicket. This is what exactly happened as overs went by during the day. Zia-ur-Rehman, however, did not last long though. Richard Ngarava got his first of the day which brought Afsar Zazai to the middle. There was a 20-minute rain delay, but that was about it.

Rahmat brought up his sixth Test fifty in an evenly-distributed session. A well-thought-out plan brought about the end of Shahidullah, who ended up prodding a ball to the silly point fielder, a ball after that fielder was positioned there. Rahmat brought up a well-deserved 209-ball ton in the 66th over, which was a third in his Test career. At Tea, Afghanistan ended up at 203/6, with a vital lead of 117 runs under their belt.

Coming into the game possessing a first class average of 92, Ismat Alam brought up a patient maiden half-century on his international debut. Beaten by the pace and movement, Rahmat departed after scoring a brilliant 139.

12 runs were scored in what turned out to be the final over of the day. Rashid Khan remained not out along with the debutant. It was a fruitful day for Afghanistan as Zimbabwe were made to toil hard. Rain brought a premature end to the day. Apart from Muzarabani, there was little to show in the wickets column. The hosts would be aiming to bowl Afghanistan out for as low a total to chase down as possible.

The last 10 overs of the day's play yielded 48 runs, implying the track is getting easier to bat on. Unlike the first Test which ended up in a stalemate, this one, however, guarantees to bring forth an outcome.