ZIM v WI, 2nd Test, Day 3 Review: Holder and Dowrich present the Windies a precious lead

Whilst the world was busy watching India and New Zealand‘s fierce competition, two other countries in the southern part of Africa are providing priceless entertainment as well. Windies and Zimbabwe are battling it out vociferously for the second Test at Bulawayo and the third day had some great twists and turns.

Banking on the wonderful bowling rendition from their batsmen, especially Sikandar Raza and Hamilton Masakadza, Zimbabwe were completely boosted on day 3. Windies batsmen decided to stick to their defensive approach and the scoring rate took a lot of time to get over 2 runs an over. Nightwatchman Bishoo stuck in for some time, but Raza induced him into a lackluster drive straight down to the bowler and he made no mistake grabbing it.

Almost immediately, they struck big time as Kyle Hope’s horrendous run continued. Once again he was dismissed for single digits and his future doesn’t look bright from here on. Shai Hope though got in and spent some valuable time. Whilst his elder brother’s poor run continued, his purple patch doesn’t seek like ending in the near future.

Kieran Powell completed a brilliant, hard-fought half-century on his way and was steadily moving towards the three digits. The spinners exhibited some great skills and batting was getting very difficult. But Powell’s wonderful knock deserved a huge applause and a 100 would’ve meant so much to him. But Mpofu spoiled the party by dismissing on 90 off 230 balls, but that doesn’t take away anything.

And the flight takes off

Their innings really took off when Roston Chase was in the middle. He played aggressively and kept the scoreboard ticking at a much faster rate. His stay was not a long one, but it was pretty valuable as they gained the momentum in the innings. Sikandar Raza provided a killer blow by picking three wickets in quick succession.

Chase was dismissed after scoring 32 off 45 balls and almost immediately, Blackwell misread the spin and spooned an easy catch to skipper Cremer. Shai Hope followed the suit as well and things and against all the odds, they seemed like taking a huge lead in the first innings. But Shane Dowrich and Jason Holder stuck in to stitch memorable partnership and things turned on its head.

Skipper Holder has been in good touch both with bat and ball and is starting to express himself really well. He played some delightful shots off the spinners and being a tall guy, his long-striding forward-defense managed to eliminate the element of spin and this provided great respite.

On the other hand, Shane Dowrich played some smart cricket and in the final few overs of the day, there was a flurry of boundaries. Dowrich played shots all across the grounds and the Calypso beats kept ringing across Bulawayo. It’s always fun watching the Caribbean batters in full flow as they tend to bring a unique flavor with every shot they play.

After working their way hard, both these players got to well-deserved half-centuries and by the time the day was over, Windies were in full control. The final few overs saw the bowlers getting exhausted and the batsmen taking full advantage. Eventually, Windies finished at 374 for the loss of 7 wickets and have a priceless 48-run lead.

Brief Scores

Zimbabwe first innings: 326 all out in 109.1 overs

Windies first innings: 374/7 in 150 overs (Kieran Powell 90, Shane Dowrich 75*, Jason Holder 71*; Sikandar Raza 5/82)