CRICKET POLL

Zimbabwe took a 1-0 lead in the Test series against Bangladesh after fetching a nervy three-wicket win on the fourth day in Sylhet. Blessing Muzarabani, who already had three wickets to his name before the start of play, added three to his tally to bowl Bangladesh out for 255. Zimbabwe's openers then set up the run chase with a solid 95-run opening stand which eventually proved to be very crucial considering Zimbabwe stuttered their way to a win in the end.

With a lead of 112 at the start of play and six wickets in hand, Bangladesh needed a good start. However, Najmul Shanto played a poor shot off just the second ball as he got a top edge while attempting a pull to fall early. That wicket proved to be a massive blow for the hosts since Shanto was the set batter. A few overs later, Muzarabani struck again for his fifth wicket as Mehidy Hasan edged one to gully. Bangladesh were now slipping rapidly as Richard Ngarava stfuck at the end, just seven balls after Mehidy's dismissal to put the hosts in deep trouble.

Jaker Ali then rallied with the tail to add a few crucial runs before becoming Muzarabani's sixth wicket as Bangladesh got bowled out for 255. With a target of 174, Zimbabwe made a breezy start as opener Brian Bennett looked in good touch again, slamming back-to-back boundaries off Nahid Rana to get going before Ben Curran found the boundary twice in the following over. The boundaries kept flowing as Bangladesh just couldn't find a way to break the opening stand. Bennett stamped his authority with a six off Taijul Islam as Zimbabwe kept running away with the target.

The 95-run opening stand finally came to an end when Curran got a leading edge while attempting to hit Mehidy against the spin. While Bennett got to his fifty, Bangladesh slowly grew into the game and caused panic in the opposition camp with a few quick wickets as Mehidy and Taijul kept posing questions. From 112/1, Zimbabwe were reduced to 128/4 but after a brief resistance, a few late strikes gave the home side hope again as Mehidy picked up a five-fer. At this point, Zimbabwe needed 13 runs whereas Bangladesh needed the final three wickets. Wessly Madhevere and Ngarava then hit a four each to ease the pressure before eventually getting the job done.

Brief scores: Bangladesh 191 (Mominul Haque 56; Wellington Mazakadza 3/21) & 255 (Najmul Shanto 60; Blessing Muzarabani 6/72) lost to Zimbabwe 273 (Sean Williams 59; Mehidy Hasan 5/52) & 174/7 (Brian Bennett 54; Mehidy Hasan 5/50) by 3 wickets