Credit: X
England bagged an innings and 45-run victory over Zimbabwe in a one-off Test played at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground on May 24. Batting first, the hosts posted a mammoth total of 565/6 on the board. The home side’s top-order batters Zak Crawley (124 off 171), Ben Duckett (140 off 134), and Ollie Pope (171 off 166) showcased their mettle and notched up centuries from their bats. Harry Brook also scored 58 runs off just 50 balls as England crossed the 560-run mark in the first innings.
Following the huge score, Zimbabwe saw the brilliant batting show of their opener Brian Bennett, who produced his maiden Test ton. His 139-run innings along with captain Craig Ervine’s 42 off 64 helped Zimbabwe put up 265 runs on the board. Shoaib Bashir stepped up for the English side and scalped three wickets and splurged 62 runs. His hunts were Ervine, Sean Williams, and Tafadwa Tsiga.
Shoaib Bashir's 6-wicket haul guides England to convincing win over Zimbabwe
After bundling out Zimbabwe for 265 in the first innings, England handed a follow-on to the visitors. In the second innings, Bashir became more aggressive as he recorded his career-best bowling innings. Bowling an 18-over spell, he grabbed 6/81 figures.
Except for Sean Williams (88 off 82) and Sikandar Raza (60 off 68), no batter could show fighting spirit against the English bowling attack. Talking about Bashir, he got the better of Williams, Ben Curran, Tsiga, Blessing Muzarabani, Raza, and Tanaka Chivanga in the innings. Bashir's exceptional bowling (3/62 and 6/81) also made him the recipient of the Player of the Match (POTM) award. Ben Stokes and his boys will now play their next Test against India on June 20 at Headingley Carnegie.
