The first-day pitch in Mirpur offered inconsistent bounce and significant turn that a Bangladesh rookie and veteran exploited to trip up Zimbabwe. The 19-year old debutant Jubair Hossain, the first specialist legspinner to play Test cricket for Bangladesh, displayed skill and a bag full of variations, and Shakib Al Hasan, in his first game after his suspension was reduced by the BCB, bowled with tremendous accuracy to constantly test the batsmen. Zimbabwe was reasonably steady in the first session, going into lunch on 77 for 2, but as the ball got older, it began to grip the surface – some deliveries stayed low, others bounced sharply, there was always a degree of spin and it never came on to the bat. Jubair and Shakib took three wickets in the second session. Zimbabwe managed to make 102 runs, though, and another 100 will make the total a competitive one, given Bangladesh are likely to bat last on this pitch. Bangladesh have not won a Test or an ODI in 2014 but are favourites in this series, a view that was strengthened when fast bowler Shahadat Hossain struck with the fifth ball of the match, drawing an edge from Vusi Sibanda with a delivery that moved late. Zimbabwe`s other opener Sikandar Raza was fluent, though driving both new-ball bowlers through cover for boundaries. The crowd at the Shere Bangla Stadium was sparse at the start but cheered vociferously when Shakib came on to bowl the eighth over. He began with two maidens and when Hamilton Masakadza tried to break free in Shakib`s third over, the attempt at clearing the straight boundary landed in Jubair`s hands at mid-off. At 31 for 2, Brendan Taylor`s decision to bat seemed to be backfiring, but he played a part in steadying the innings. He got off the mark by sweeping Shakib fine, and got into his stride by square-driving the other left-arm spinner Taijul Islam to the point boundary before lofting back over his head for six. Realising the importance of Taylor`s wicket, Bangladesh reviewed a bat-pad decision that went against Shakib but replays indicated no edge. Raza also had his moments, stepping out to a flighted delivery to lift Shakib over cover, and using the depth of his crease to turn the strike over. He had some luck, though, when a top-edged pull fell short of the fielder at fine leg. Jubair had bowled the last over before lunch and in his first after the break, he ended the third-wicket stand on 52. The delivery was flighted and dipped sharply on the batsman, and Taylor ended up scooping it straight to mid-off, leaving Zimbabwe 83 for 3. For a teenager with only two first-class matches worth of experience, Jubair bowled an accurate length around off stump, and mixed legbreaks with the occasional googly that turned significantly. One googly pitched outside off and spun to hit Elton Chigumbura on the back pad, but the turn was so much that the ball would have missed leg stump by a long way. Chigumbura, however, had begun aggressively, driving his second delivery – off Jubair – to the cover boundary, and used the sweep and the cut against the spinners. Raza had become far more watchful after lunch and he brought up his second half-century in his second Test by sweeping Shakib for four. He did not push on though and was done in by a dipping legbreak from Jubair that he spooned to cover. Shakib had Chigumbura caught soon after – Mominul Haque diving forward at silly point to reduce Zimbabwe to 142 for 5. Mushfiqur crowded the batsmen with several close catchers but Craig Ervine and Regis Chakabva survived. Ervine scored his first three boundaries off Jubair – one sweep and two punches through cover – and Chakbva lofted him for a clean, straight six. Their partnership will be key in Zimbabwe staying competitive in this innings. Source : espncricinfo.com
