Peter Moor dominated against Zimbabwe, his previous team and birthplace. He recorded his highest Test score as Ireland’s opener. The hosts, like the visitors from day one, faded in the afternoon. They wasted a key opportunity after reducing the score to less than 100 with eight wickets remaining. However, an improbable tenth-wicket combination of 47 between Andy McBrine and debutant Matthew Humphreys gave them a comfortable 40-run lead after two innings in Belfast.
Zimbabwe’s poor bowling and sloppy fielding behind the wickets helped Ireland to a comfortable advantage. The African conceded 59 runs in extras, 42 of which were byes, the highest in Test cricket’s 137-year history. Tanaka Chivanga’s (3 for 39) and Blessing Muzarabani’s (3 for 53) heroics, on the other hand, ensured that Ireland did not dominate with the bat.
Zimbabwe’s Post-Midday Recovery
The day began similarly to the prior morning, with hitters dominating the proceedings. Opener Andy Balbirnie only scored 19 but provided valuable support to Moor, who batted at top speed. Together, they set a new Ireland record for the highest opening partnership of 71, and Moor also scored his first fifty for Ireland, his sixth in Tests.
His scoring square on both sides of the pitch, with none down the ground, was the highlight of his innings. His strokes helped Ireland roll at 4.60 per over in a 25-over morning session that saw them reach 115 for 2. Chivanga, in only his second Test, was the most consistent of Zimbabwe’s bowlers early on, and his constant groupings on a fair length, or slightly fuller, were well rewarded.
In the sixteenth over, Balbirnie chipped a flick to square leg, and he hit with his second ball of the day. He added a second in the 22nd over when his delivery squared Curtis Campher and went outside for the first slip. Those two dismissals guaranteed that Zimbabwe did not completely lose the morning session.
However, the tide shifted in Zimbabwe’s favor after midday, under grey skies. Chivanga got Harry Tector lbw for four, and Paul Stirling, who came in at number five, gloved a short ball to the gully for a catch. Stirling escaped thanks to a front-foot no-ball, and he, like Moor, chose attritional cricket to prevent further collapse. The pair tallied 50 runs, 30 of which came off the bat and 20 off byes and wides.
Extras Boost Ireland’s Score
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Moor scored 79 points after tickling Muzarabani’s short ball to the goalie. Lorcan Tucker went out lbw for a duck on the next ball after attempting to beat him on the flick. Sean Williams, a left-arm spinner, then dismissed Stirling for 22 as he edged a ball spinning away to first slip. And then Mark Adair in consecutive overs.
Ireland quickly went from 165 for 3 to 189 for 7, and it was shortly 200 for 8 when Tendai Chatara removed Barry McCarthy with the last ball before tea. Muzarabani added a third at the start of the fourth session, putting Zimbabwe one wicket away from a first-innings lead, but the McBrine-Humphreys combo counterattacked after another rain break, smashing 47 in 44 balls.
It was a difficult day for Zimbabwe wicketkeeper Clive Madande on his debut. He was successful at times, but the ball frequently slipped by him. The extras eventually became Ireland’s second-highest scorer. Byes conceded accounted for the largest proportion of any team’s run total (minimum 200 runs). Zimbabwe could have dominated the game if that facet of their play had been improved. Instead, they trailed by 28 at stumps after their openers added 12 late in the evening.
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