Zimbabwe survive Ballance blow to draw with West Indies

BULAWAYO, AFP: Zimbabwe survived the loss of first innings centurion Gary Ballance and some testing spin bowling from West Indies duo Gudakesh Motie and Roston Chase to cling on for a draw in the first Test in Bulawayo on Wednesday.

Set 272 to win in a minimum of 49 overs after West Indies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite declared their second innings at 203 for five, Zimbabwe staggered to 134 for six before stumps were drawn.

“To see Zimbabwe come back and force their way back into the game, and pushing for victory, says a lot about Test cricket,” said Brathwaite. “I believe Test cricket is alive. For the players, Test cricket is about fighting for their country. Zimbabwe did that, that’s test cricket for you.

“We wanted to take 10 wickets (in the final session), that was the focus. But we knew it was going to be difficult and Zimbabwe batted well.” Zimbabwe produced a gritty rear guard from their lower order after slumping to 119 for five with former England batter Ballance edging Chase to wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva for 18.

Any thoughts of chasing down the notional target were long gone with the emphasis shifting to surviving the last 70 balls at the Queens Sports Club.