Kiwis stave off Zim

Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor celebrates his century during the tense final day of the only Test against New Zealand at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo yesterday. Taylor gave the hosts a sniff of a victory as he raced to his second Test ton.Photo: AFP

The currently unranked Zimbabwe went at the world No. 8 New Zealand mercilessly on a fifth day dripping with Test-match brilliance, but they ran out of steam dramatically after tea to lose by 34 runs. It was a crushing result for the hosts who went for a win in a situation that would have forced many of the Test elite sides to play safe.
Their spark was lit by Brendan Taylor, who hustled to his third century in seven innings. Taylor's brilliance put Zimbabwe on pole position at tea, but the game turned on its head once he exited to the second ball after the break. Doug Bracewell and Daniel Vettori barged through the opening, as Zimbabwe capsized from 265 for 3 to 331 all out, with less than six overs left to play.
The force was with Zimbabwe when the teams went into tea, with the target down to 101 off a possible 29 overs. New Zealand's shoulders had visibly slumped a little earlier, when the lack of sufficient video evidence meant a huge moment went against them. Taylor had scythed the tenth ball with the second new ball uppishly to deep cover. BJ Watling dived forward to scoop it spectacularly inches from the ground, but it was impossible to say from the camera angles on offer whether it was a clean catch. The biggest moment of the match had gone Zimbabwe's way, or so it seemed. Incredibly, Taylor holed out to the same fielder after the break, and this time Watling pouched it clearly.
Suddenly, New Zealand found the extra gear they had lacked all day, when Taylor, assisted by Tino Mawoyo and Tatenda Taibu, was hauling in the target. Daniel Vettori, who has an unspectacular record in the fourth innings, probed away with intent, employing two slips and short leg against the debutant Malcolm Waller. Taibu, already past 50, was the bigger menace, and Vettori adopted a negative line. After resisting the urge to sweep all day, Taibu eventually top-edged one to midwicket.
Zimbabwe looked for singles, New Zealand looked for wickets, and the pressure got to Bracewell, who over-stepped while delivering an effort ball that would have got him a wicket. Vettori then made a strong case for the Spirit of Cricket award, by refraining from appealing for a potentially match-turning run-out after unknowingly obstructing a single. With every run scored, the game was swinging in a manner Twenty20 cricket just cannot replicate. Bracewell then imposed himself on the proceedings, cleaning up the tail, while Man-of-the-Match Vettori trapped Waller and Chris Mpofu to seal the game.