West Indies crush Zimbabwe in 2nd Test, win series 1-0
West Indies beat Zimbabwe by an innings and four runs to win the second Test and pocket the two-match series 1-0. Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie picked a six-wicket haul as Zimbabwe perished on 173. Skipper Craig Ervine scored a valiant fifty but it wasn't enough. The first Test ended as a draw after facing several rain interruptions. We look at the key stats.
How did the second Test pan out?
Opting to bat, hosts Zimbabwe were down to 70/5 at lunch on Day 1. Innocent Kaia (38) was Zimbabwe's top scorer as they crawled to 115. For WI, Motie (7/37) was the best bet. The visitors hammered 292 and took a 177-run lead, riding on half-centuries from Roston Chase and Raymon Reifer. Zimbabwe lost wickets at frequent stages to surrender the duel (173/10).
Motie proves to be a handful for Zimbabwe
Motie grabbed seven wickets in the first innings (7/37) and followed it up with a six-wicket haul (6/62) as Zimbabwe crumbled in Bulawayo. As per ESPNcricinfo, Motie's astonishing figures of 7/37 are the best by a West Indian bowler against Zimbabwe in Test cricket. He has raced to 19 wickets in three matches at 17.89.
Nyauchi wreaks havoc in Bulawayo
Right-arm pacer Victory Nyauchi took his maiden Test fifer. He claimed three wickets on Day 2, uprooting Chase, Joshua Da Silva, and Alzarri Joseph. He trumped Jason Holder and Motie to complete the milestone. Holder was out on a harmless delivery while Motie mistimed a short ball to be caught at deep square leg. Nyacuhi now has 20 Test scalps at 36.70.
Chase and Reifer slam fifties each
Reifer slammed an 86-ball 53 (4s: 4, 6s: 1). He scored his second Test fifty to tally 200 runs in five matches. All-rounder Chase racked up a gritty 70 off 132 deliveries (4s: 4, 6s: 1). He clocked his 11th Test fifty. He also added 85 runs with Da Silva for the sixth wicket. He now has 2,215 runs in 47 matches, averaging 27.01.
Ervine's valiant fifty goes in vain
Middle-order batter Ervine came up with scores of 22 and 72. He notched his fifth half-century in Test cricket and first against West Indies. He has steered to 1,332 runs across 20 matches at 35.05. Versus WI, he now holds 281 runs at 25.54.
A look at other key records
Zimbabwe haven't won a single Test match against West Indies to date. They have lost eight Tests besides four draws. Zimbabwe's 115 is their second-lowest total in an innings against West Indies in Tests played at home. They had managed a paltry fourth-innings total of 104 in Bulawayo back in 2003. They eventually lost the Test by 128 runs.
