HARARE, Feb 22: Bangladesh were on the brink of a crushing defeat in the opening Test after Zimbabwe fast bowler Andy Blignaut claimed his country's first hat trick in Test history on Sunday.
Chasing an unlikely 353 to win after Zimbabwe had declared their second innings closed at 242 for eight, Bangladesh were tottering at 25 for five at the close of the fourth day.
Blignaut sent the tourists reeling from 14 for two to 14 for five after just five overs of their second innings. He trapped Hannan Sarkar lbw for 10, had Mohammad Ashraful caught in the gully and then removed Mushfiqur Rahman with a catch behind off consecutive deliveries to claim the 32nd hat trick in Test cricket.
Zimbabwe were dismissed for 441 in their first innings, to which Bangladesh replied with 331. Bangladesh had resumed their first innings on 313 for nine, and debutant Manjural Islam Rana and Manjural Islam kept the innings alive for a further nine overs in adding 43 for the last wicket.
The partnership was a Bangladesh record for the 10th wicket against all opposition in the country's 27th Test match. The previous best was the 34 runs Khaled Mashud and Mohammad Sharif put on against Zimbabwe in Chittagong in 2001-02.
The partnership was ended when Blignaut had Manjural Islam caught behind by wicket-keeper Tatenda Taibu for five. In the sixth of the 16 overs Zimbabwe faced before lunch, left-arm medium pacer Manjural Islam angled a delivery across Trevor Gripper, who edged it to Khaled Mashud to be caught behind for five.
Zimbabwe's second wicket fell in the third over after lunch, Dion Ebrahim (31) driving at a delivery from Baisya and edging it to Sarkar at second slip. Four overs later, Grant Flower, on three, attempted to cut a ball from Baisya and feathered a catch to Mashud.
Stuart Carlisle and Taibu consolidated in a fourth-wicket stand of 36 before Carlisle, who batted with a runner after aggravating an old quadricep injury in the first innings, departed 10 overs before tea after pushing a delivery to mid-on.
Sarkar fielded and threw down the stumps at the non-striker's end to run Carlisle out for 33. Taibu and Sean Ervine scored steadily in their fifth-wicket stand of 90, which ended when Taibu drove a ball from left-arm spinner Mohammad Rafique to Habibul Bashar at extra cover.
Ervine made a brisk 74 off 78 balls, with eight boundaries, before heaving a ball from left-arm spinner Islam Rana to Baisya at deep midwicket. Zimbabwe's declaration came after Blignaut, who blasted 32 off 27 balls with two fours and a six, heaved a delivery from Islam Rana to deep midwicket.
Bangladesh, however, plunged into early trouble in their second innings when medium pacer Douglas Hondo trapped Shahriar Hossain, for one, and Bashar, for no score, with the second and sixth balls of the fourth over.
In the following over, Blignaut removed Sarkar lbw with an inswinger with the third ball. His next delivery was tantalisingly pitched wide of off-stump and Ashraful, who top-scored with 98 in the Bangladesh first innings, steered it uppishly to substitute fielder Travis Friend in the gully.
Blignaut completed the hat trick when Rahman was given out caught behind by umpire Neil Mallender, although television replays suggested the ball may have hit the flap of the batsman's pad, and not the bat.
