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Times
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
England vs Zimbabwe Test day 3 — as it happened
England captain Ben Stokes has also been sharing his thoughts: 'I thought we took our time to get into the Test match with the ball, but we ended the day really nicely yesterday. Zimbabwe have some quality players, with the first innings hundred and Williams. We stuck at the task, we had to try a few different things and I was pretty pleased with how we ended up finishing. 'It's been a long time since we've played Test cricket. It was obvious yesterday that the change of intensity required for Test cricket, but we got into the swing of things. 'I felt really good today, felt I was in a good rhythm, it's another good week to get through.' Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine has had some time with the microphone and heaped praise on his supporters. 'Our fans are like no other, the amount of support we receive. The occasion was massive for us and the guys stuck to their guns. The first day didn't go our way but we bounced back. Brian Bennett, an unbelievable innings, then Sean Williams and Sikandar Raza today. 'Maybe a bit of nerves at the start. Guys not being as consistent as usual. That little session on day two, we were much better. That's something we'll look at going forward.' Shoaib Bashir has been named as the player of the match after his career-best match figures of 9-143. He's been speaking: 'Nice ground to bowl at when it's spinning. Nice to get the win. Nice to bowl back in rhythm, felt really good out there. Clinical performance by boys. 'I went on loan to get overs, nice to join the group and the training camp at Loughborough. Nice to be out in front of an England crowd, can't get better than that. 'The guys make you feel 10ft tall. When you're backed you can go out and express yourself.' Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge There's a quick turnaround for some of the England players, though. They are back in action in the one-day series against West Indies next week. Thanks for your company for the past three days. Stay tuned for Simon Wilde's report, some analysis from Simon Hughes and we'll have the reaction from the post match presentations. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge So, lots of plus points for England from that match. Most importantly that Ben Stokes is back fully fit, bowling with pace and aggression. Zak Crawley got some much-needed runs and for Zimbabwe there were some good individual performances from Brian Bennett, Sikanda Raza and Sean Williams. The England selectors won't have learned much and it won't have affected their plans for the India series but, nonetheless, a good outing for England as a warm-up for the main event next month. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Tanaka Chivanga is given out LBW to give Shoaib Bashir his sixth wicket but it's being reviewed. All good on that end, and that is that: England win by an innings and 45 runs. A comprehensive victory but Zimbabwe put up a fight at points and it lasted longer than some people were predicting which will please the Nottinghamshire chief executive. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge This batting pair are just going to keep slogging at everything and just see what happens — it's quite fun but you get the feeling it won't last long. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Shoaib Bashir has 15 wickets at 18.7 at Trent Bridge. He's got himself into a good rhythm as the match has progressed. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Five wickets for Shoaib Bashir and eight in the match — he loves Trent Bridge. Five for 70 off 16.2 overs as Raza departs for a very enterprising 60. Big slog, top edged to Brook at slip for a simple catch. 241-8, Zimb trailing by 59. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Raza brings up his fifty and he's played really well but isn't getting any support at the other end. The seventh wicket goes down as Blessing Muzarabani goes for a big heave ho towards deep midwicket and is caught by Joe Root in the deep without scoring. England aren't far off the win now. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge This is drawing to its conclusion as Shoaib Bashir gets his sixth wicket of the match by bowling wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga. They had to check it because the batsman was standing in the umpire's way, obstructing his view. He couldn't see and wanted to check it wasn't Jamie Smith whipping the bails off. But it wasn't, so Tsiga goes for four. It was a lovely ball flighted on off stump with a sharp inwards turn. Zimbabwe now 218 for six but we think England will only need to get nine wickets and Zimbabwe still trail by 82. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Oh my word, that is an absolutely incredible catch by Harry Brook! Ben Stokes has his hands on his head in disbelief at how good that was. Stokes, bowling, gets a thick edge and it flies above Brook's head. But he leaps in the air and plucks it one handed, and the reaction from Brook's team-mates is utter disbelief. Much like Stuart Broad's reaction in the 2015 Ashes here when Stokes plucked one at gully out of nowhere. England closing in now as Madhevere's sparky innings comes to an end. Please enable cookies and other technologies to view this content. You can update your cookies preferences any time using privacy manager. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge This partnership has passed fifty in no time at all and Wessly Madhevere is playing aggressively. He is not defending much or leaving many balls, but it's proving effective. He is going along at nearly a run a ball at the moment. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Sam Cook is convinced he's got Wessly Madhevere LBW here. There is a massive appeal from him and his team-mates but the umpire is unmoved. So we go for a review. The ball was pitched on middle and off and nipped back too much so it's missing leg stump. England only have one review left now. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Harry Brook has been hit in the face after a loose drive that was edged towards him. Luckily, it's just knocked his cap off and him on to his backside. He's laughing so it's all fine. Raza follows up that loose drive with a four. And then another boundary. Sikandar Raza has moved to 22 from 21 balls and this partnership is galloping along, but there are some risky shots being played so England won't mind it. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Ben Curran might be back in the hutch but his younger brother is still going at the Oval — he's 70 not out against Essex in his first match of the season. Jason Roy, another white-ball specialist who has only just returned to first-class cricket, was out for a duck. Meanwhile here at Trent Bridge, Wessly Madhevere has made a bright start to his innings 16 from 15 balls. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge The lunch break has brought a wicket – another one for Bashir and this time Stokes does hold on to the catch to get rid of Ben Curran for 37. It was a soft dismissal, though, driving in the air straight to Stokes at short cover. Zimb now 142-4 and trailing by 158. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Away from the Test match, Chris Woakes is playing his first match back from injury and has two wickets for Warwickshire against Worcestershire, who have been reduced to 88 for five. Woakes is also in the Lions squad to play against India A to get more overs under his belt. This is the last round of championship matches for a while. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge It is lunchtime ladies and gentlemen. A good morning for Zimbabwe. Obviously they are still a long, long way behind and this should be a routine win at some point today for England. The partnership between Curran and Williams was an admirable display but England are creating a fair few chances There are 65 overs left today, which should be plenty to get this wrapped up but you never know… Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge And we have another review off Bashir. This time it is Williams who sweeps and misses and as it was given out on the field, the decision stays as the review shows it is just hitting leg stump. That marks the end of a very resourceful and skillful innings. Williams has scored 88 out of 129. The partnership was 122 but it's taken almost an hour and 50 minutes to take a wicket this morning. That is Bashir's fourth in the match. 129-3. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Ben Curran has been given out LBW off Shoaib Bashir. Umpire Dharmasena took ages to put the finger up and Curran wants it reviewed. It was an arm ball, and Curran tried to sweep, played over the ball, and it's missing going over the top of leg stump. So Curran survives! It was a very close call but the on field decision is reversed. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Oh we were so close to Ben Curran being dismissed! He was dropped by Ben Stokes at midwicket after his rash shot off Josh Tongue went fast in the air to Stokes's left. The England captain got a hand to it but it went down and Zimbabwe scamper a single. Sean Williams is playing pull shots nicely, rolling his wrists to keep them down playing towards fine leg. Very controlled. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge That's the hundred partnership and it's come from 121 balls. Williams has 72 of them but Ben Curran has been solid enough with some fluency. I've just seen his older brother Tom out of the back of the pavilion with his mates. Sam, the younger one, is playing for Surrey at the Oval, he is 33 not out. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Joe Root is having a bowl from the Stuart Broad End in search of his 72nd Test wicket. His wickets have come at 45 a piece but he has been a partnership breaker on occasions and his fourth ball finds an underedge that only just misses Curran's leg stump. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Ben Stokes is being very sensible. He has only bowled four overs. As much as I suspect he wants to try to be the one to break this partnership, it's far more important that he looks after his body. There is a strong chance he'll play for England Lions in the second of the matches against India A next month. If he does he'll be captained by James Rew and would be a big thing for the young all-rounder skippering his Test captain. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Sean Williams is receiving treatment; he's been hit on the left wrist and there is actual blood. The players are having a drink whilst he gets taped up. Meanwhile Joe Root is talking to the umpire about the ball. His argument is that the ball is out of shape, so they are having a look at it. Regardless, it's been a good first hour for Zimbabwe. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Fifty for Sean Williams off 42 balls — his sixth Test half-century. He's looked very fluent this morning, bringing up his fifty, by drilling Josh Tongue down the ground and then taking him for another boundary the next ball. The partnership is now worth 75 and this is a good sign for the tourists. It's good to see some fight even though they almost certainly know they're on a losing cause. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge I was just asking a few colleagues what they'd made of Jamie Smith's wicketkeeping in this match and the consensus was that they hadn't really noticed it, which I think means he's done a good job. Like goalkeepers, you only really notice when they make a howling mistake. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Zimbabwe have survived the first half hour without any alarm, taking the partnership past fifty, but both Ben Stokes and Sam Cook are beating the bat and getting some bounce and movement. Nevertheless the touring side haven't crumbled in a heap…yet…which is what some people were predicting. Every run is being cheered loudly by quite a big Zimbabwe-supporting contingent in the ground. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Ben Stokes is coming round the wicket to the left handed Curran and starts with a great delivery that is so hard for a left hander; angles in, extra bounce and there was a bit of a grimace on Curran's face as it flew past him Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Zimbabwe have a 50 partnership between Sean Williams and Ben Curran, and the latter is looking much more assured today than yesterday. He is offering good balance and keeping his head still. Sam Cook is getting a bit of nip off the pitch from the Stuart Broad End. Brian Bennett spoke of how much the loud Zimbabwe fans in the Trent Bridge crowd had spurred him on to his great total. 'To get that reception from a packed crowd was unbelievable,' he said. 'Before that I could hear them singing the war cries that we always hear at home and it gave me goosebumps. The crowds have been amazing the last two days.' Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge And Ben Stokes is going to kick off the morning with the ball. He bowled 3.2 overs yesterday taking two wickets for 11 and came through them fine, although didn't bring himself back on but he will be very, very carefully managing himself. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge The Zimbabwe opener Brian Bennett's second Test century was inspired by seeing the names of the England centurions from the first day go up on to the Trent Bridge honours board. The 21-year-old said it was an 'emotional day' as he led a Zimbabwe fightback for much of the day. 'I saw Zak Crawley's name go up on the honours board this morning and thought it would be very nice to see my name up there too,' Bennett said. He became the second Zimbabwe player to go on the board after Murray Goodwin. Elizabeth Ammon, at Trent Bridge Good morning from Trent Bridge where it is very cloudy, pretty chilly but it is dry. The cover is off, the players have warmed up and we'll start on time. Richard Ngarava is injured and we aren't sure if he will bat – he didn't yesterday. So England may only need to take seven wickets. Steve James, at Trent Bridge And then there was the curious case of off-spinner Shoaib Bashir, who had a spectacularly fruitless spell on loan at Glamorgan earlier this season, taking just two wickets in three matches, and here he was taking three wickets, and he could have had five had he taken two return catches. There were moments of horrible inconsistency but two of the wickets came from absolute beauties, with left-hander Craig Ervine caught at slip and right-hander Tafadzwa Tsiga bowled through the gate. The height of the ceiling has become a cliché but you could see here why England reckon his to be quite so high. Simon Wilde, at Trent Bridge Shubman Gill has been named captain of an 18-man India Test squad to tour England this summer in a five-match series that starts at Headingley on June 20. Gill will be leading the side for the first time, following the recent departure of Rohit Sharma, and at 25 will be the youngest man to captain India since Sachin Tendulkar in 1997. Jasprit Bumrah captained in Sharma's absence twice in Australia last winter but as a fast bowler whose fitness needs managing following recent injuries he has been spared a formal leadership role. It is possible Bumrah will not play all five Tests given that they span less than seven weeks. Steve James, at Trent Bridge Both Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue initially looked a little short of a gallop, but their extra pace was telling later on, as it was from the skipper when earlier bowling a mesmerising few overs, taking two wickets and moving the ball so much more in the air than the others that it was as if he had sneaked his own ball on to use. Steve James, at Trent Bridge Some observations here: firstly that a chap called James Anderson also made his Test debut against Zimbabwe, the last time they were here playing a Test, in 2003, and he conceded 17 from his first over as Dion Ebrahim took three fours. He went on to do rather decently. He actually took five for 73 in that first innings on debut, but the crucial difference, of course, is that he was 20 years old then, and Cook is 27 now. Cook has been banging vainly on the selectors' doors for a long time, and it took a fine performance for England Lions in Australia this year for them finally to convince themselves that Cook needed this opportunity at the highest level. An added factor ahead of this winter's Ashes was the change seen recently in Australian Test pitches, where much more live, green grass has been spied and the Kookaburra balls have been appropriately roused, and as a result Scott Boland, who operates at only a touch above 80mph, has positively thrived. Steve James, at Trent Bridge Eyes immediately turned to the speed gun. Sam Cook had just bowled his first ball in Test cricket, indeed the first ball of Zimbabwe's first innings, and attention turned to how quickly he had bowled it. Why? Simply because lack of pace has long been the reason for Cook's absence from the England Test team, despite having been the outstanding seam bowler in county cricket for many years. The radar's answer was promising. It read 81mph. That is not quick, of course, not in Test cricket anyway, but it is not as slow as some had feared. Indeed for the first spell of six overs he bowled, Cook managed to keep the speedometer above 80mph. ● Read in full: Sam Cook finds that, at his pace, there's no margin for error Mike Atherton, at Trent Bridge Ben Stokes had come on to replace Shoaib Bashir halfway through the 37th over, after the spinner `had split a finger dropping a return catch, and on an afternoon when the other seamers toiled, Stokes immediately looked like he was bowling with a different ball and on a different pitch. In three eye-catching overs before tea, Stokes took two wickets, bounding in like a man who had never been away instead of someone having his first bowl in a competitive match for five months. After an initial no-ball, his rhythm looked excellent and he dismissed Sikandar Raza with a snorter that moved late and bounced, and then set up Wes Madhevere with a collection of outswingers, before bringing one back the other way. Such is his importance to the balance of England's attack this cameo spell was the highlight of England's performance with the ball, and it made up for his brief appearance with the bat in the morning. Stokes opted to prolong England's innings first thing, but Ollie Pope added only two to his overnight total, before edging a drive from Tanaka Chivanga, after which Stokes got in a tangle and top-edged a hook off Blessing Muzarabani. Mike Atherton, at Trent Bridge Cricketers rarely need reminding of the game's capricious nature and its ability to induce delight one minute and disappointment the next. Brian Bennett, Zimbabwe's 21-year-old opener, had one of those tumultuous days, scoring a brilliant hundred before being dismissed cheaply second time around, after Zimbabwe were asked to follow on. England now have designs on a three-day victory to get their summer off to a winning start. But what a hundred it was first of all, and what a moment for him and his family. On a bright, warm Nottingham afternoon, Bennett back-cut Gus Atkinson for a third consecutive boundary, his 20th, and ran to the non-striker's end emitting a roar of delight, raising a clenched fist to the skies and acknowledging the generous applause by planting a kiss on the badge of his helmet, much as West Indies' Kavem Hodge had done at this ground 12 months before. ● Read in full: Ben Stokes finds rhythm on return as Brian Bennett earns Zimbabwe respect In case you still need a reminder, here the two squadrons having at it today. England: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Jamie Smith (wk), 7 Ben Stokes (capt), 8 Gus Atkinson, 9 Sam Cook, 10 Josh Tongue, 11 Shoaib Bashir Zimbabwe: 1 Brian Bennett, 2 Ben Curran, 3 Craig Ervine (capt), 4 Sean Williams, 5 Sikandar Raza, 6 Wessly Madhevere, 7 Tafadzwa Tsiga (wk), 8 Richard Ngarava, 9 Blessing Muzarabani, 10 Tanaka Chivanga, 11 Victor Nyauchi Hello and welcome to The Times' coverage of the third day of the one-off Test match between England and Zimbabwe. It's one-way traffic, as you would expect, in Nottingham and there is every chance that the match gets wrapped up today. However, the weather is not as nice today as it has been. Will that help Zimbabwe? We'll have updates.
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Shoaib Bashir showed real character to come back with three wickets on day two against Zimbabwe but the young spinner must keep showing signs of improvement to nail down a place in the Ashes, writes NASSER HUSSAIN
This is a big year for Shoaib Bashir. He is no longer the novice who England picked from nowhere after spotting him on Twitter making his County Championship debut for Somerset in 2023. This is his now his 16th Test match and, coming into Trent Bridge, he averaged 40 with the ball for England. After a while, those stats have got to start moving in the right direction. You can't just keep saying he is finding his way or that he is a work in progress. It has also been a difficult start to the season for Bashir in county cricket. He has been loaned out to Glamorgan and taken just two wickets in three matches at an average of 152. With India coming up and then the Ashes, the pressure is on him. But with all of that in mind, I thought he showed real character against Zimbabwe on Friday. Having started his spell with a full toss, and another couple of full tosses in his first three overs, you feared a little bit for him. But he came back to get three wickets, two of which were deliveries of real quality. The ball he got Craig Ervine with was exactly why England picked him in the first place – getting beautiful drop with that high release point and getting the left-hander driving. Even more encouraging, however, was the ball which bowled Tafadzwa Tsiga. It was a classic off-spinners dismissal of a right-hander, bowling that attacking line, encouraging the drive, and bowling the batsman through the gate. It reminded me of the way Graeme Swann dismissed Ricky Ponting in the Ashes at Edgbaston in 2009. If the ball is spinning, that attacking line should be Bashir's stock delivery to the right-hander because it brings in both edges of the bat. In the past, he has been guilty of bowling too straight, which means the only way he can dismiss the right-hander is either getting him caught at short leg or leg slip. Bashir's biggest problem, though, remains his control. It's a bit like when Swann made his England debut under my captaincy, when he was a bit young and naïve. You saw he had something but he didn't have that control. With a wrist spinner, you accept there may be the odd bad ball, but you cannot afford that from a finger spinner, especially in a first innings when you are often needed to do a holding role. With the way the pitches have been in Australia of late, England have the option of going into the Ashes with an all-seam attack. I wouldn't do that. I'd always want a spinner in Australia. But if it's not turning big, you need your spinner to get through 20 overs in a day and hold up an end so you can rotate your seamers at the other end. That's what Bashir needs to prove he can do against India if he is to play in the Ashes. There has been some talk of him dropping out of the team to find a place for Jacob Bethell, who can give England another spin option. But I think that would be too much of a fudge. Bashir is worth persevering with – but he has got to keep showing signs of improvement.
CNA
23-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
England dominate Zimbabwe after Bennett's record century
NOTTINGHAM, England :England were closing in on a crushing victory over Zimbabwe at the close on the second day of the one-off test on Friday, despite opener Brian Bennett scoring the fastest test century for the African side. The touring team finished on 30-2 in their second innings after following on, 270 runs behind the hosts, the 21-year-old Bennett dismissed for one following his fine knock of 139 in Zimbabwe's first-innings total of 265. England earlier declared on 565-6 after pummelling Zimbabwe's poor quality bowling to all corners of Trent Bridge. Bennett led an initially positive reply as Zimbabwe, playing their first test in England in 22 years, reached 73-1 at lunch. Captain Craig Ervine contributed 42 and Sean Williams made 25 but the last six wickets fell for just over 100 runs with Zimbabwe one batsmen short after seamer Richard Ngarava was unable to bat due to injury. Spinner Shoaib Bashir (3-62) and home captain Ben Stokes, bowling in a match for the first time in five months, shone in England's attack with debutant Sam Cook toiling for his solitary wicket. Stokes found movement on a dry pitch as he swung the ball both ways and took 2-11, also having Bennett dropped at first slip by Joe Root when he was on 89. Bennett wasted no time in racing to his century with three successive boundaries bringing up the milestone off 97 balls. He had a brief rest before coming back out for the last 45 minutes in Zimbabwe's second innings and was trapped lbw by Gus Atkinson, followed soon by Ervine for two when Zimbabwe's skipper was snagged at short leg by Ollie Pope off Josh Tongue. Ben Curran (4) and Williams (22) were unbeaten at stumps with Zimbabwe facing a daunting task to save the match. Rain is forecast on Saturday, which will give the English bowlers a sense of urgency as they seek to wrap up victory in the four-day match.
The Star
23-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Cricket-Zimbabwe reach 73-1 at lunch after England declare first innings on 565-6
Cricket - International Test Match Series - England v Zimbabwe - Trent Bridge, Nottingham, Britain - May 23, 2025 Zimbabwe's Craig Ervine in action Action Images via Reuters/Peter Cziborra NOTTINGHAM, England (Reuters) - Zimbabwe made a positive start as they began their reply to England's imposing first-innings score, reaching 73 for one wicket at lunch on the second day of the one-off test at Trent Bridge on Friday. The 21-year-old Brian Bennett was unbeaten on 36 off 38 balls alongside captain Craig Ervine (30 not out) at the end of the morning session, trailing by 492 runs after England had declared their first innings on 565-6. Bennett hit three boundaries in the first over off debutant Sam Cook and was aggressive as the visitors looked to put behind them an attritional opening day for their bowlers on Thursday. But Cook did get a first test wicket as he squared up Ben Curran, who got a thick edge to steer the ball to Harry Brook at second slip in the fifth over of the Zimbabwe innings. Curran, whose two brothers have played test cricket for England, made six runs. Zimbabwe had been pummelled on the opening day as their poor bowling was sent to all corners by a rampant English batting line-up, who amassed 498-3 with Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope all scoring centuries. England batted for a further 45 minutes on the second day, losing three wickets in the 8.3 overs they faced on Friday morning before declaring. Pope, eyeing a double century after being 169 not out overnight, added only two runs to his total before a faint edge off Tanaka Chivanga to wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga saw him depart nine balls into the new day's play. Captain Ben Stokes, in his first knock since the December test against New Zealand, was bounced out by the tall seamer Blessing Muzarabani for nine, falling to a good catch at fine leg by Curran squinting into the sun. Brook was dropped on the ropes by substitute fielder Wellington Masakadza off Chivanga before rushing to his half century off 48 balls. But when he played on to Muzarabani two balls later and was out for 58, England declared with Jamie Smith unbeaten on four at the other end after being dropped by Tsiga off Chivanga in the previous over. Muzarabani was the best of the Zimbabwe bowlers with 3-143 off 24.3 overs. The four-day test is the first for Zimbabwe in England in more than 20 years. (Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Toby Davis)
CNA
23-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
Zimbabwe reach 73-1 at lunch after England declare first innings on 565-6
NOTTINGHAM, England : Zimbabwe made a positive start as they began their reply to England's imposing first-innings score, reaching 73 for one wicket at lunch on the second day of the one-off test at Trent Bridge on Friday. The 21-year-old Brian Bennett was unbeaten on 36 off 38 balls alongside captain Craig Ervine (30 not out) at the end of the morning session, trailing by 492 runs after England had declared their first innings on 565-6. Bennett hit three boundaries in the first over off debutant Sam Cook and was aggressive as the visitors looked to put behind them an attritional opening day for their bowlers on Thursday. But Cook did get a first test wicket as he squared up Ben Curran, who got a thick edge to steer the ball to Harry Brook at second slip in the fifth over of the Zimbabwe innings. Curran, whose two brothers have played test cricket for England, made six runs. Zimbabwe had been pummelled on the opening day as their poor bowling was sent to all corners by a rampant English batting line-up, who amassed 498-3 with Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope all scoring centuries. England batted for a further 45 minutes on the second day, losing three wickets in the 8.3 overs they faced on Friday morning before declaring. Pope, eyeing a double century after being 169 not out overnight, added only two runs to his total before a faint edge off Tanaka Chivanga to wicketkeeper Tafadzwa Tsiga saw him depart nine balls into the new day's play. Captain Ben Stokes, in his first knock since the December test against New Zealand, was bounced out by the tall seamer Blessing Muzarabani for nine, falling to a good catch at fine leg by Curran squinting into the sun. Brook was dropped on the ropes by substitute fielder Wellington Masakadza off Chivanga before rushing to his half century off 48 balls. But when he played on to Muzarabani two balls later and was out for 58, England declared with Jamie Smith unbeaten on four at the other end after being dropped by Tsiga off Chivanga in the previous over. Muzarabani was the best of the Zimbabwe bowlers with 3-143 off 24.3 overs. The four-day test is the first for Zimbabwe in England in more than 20 years.
