Azhar Ali, Abid Ali dominate before Blessing Muzarabani triple-strike tilts the balance

Pakistan moved from 72/1 to 166/1 in the second session as Zimbabwe lost their discipline

Tea Pakistan 166 for 1 (Abid 80*, Azhar 74*, Ngarava 1-13) vs Zimbabwe

Imran Butt’s fall in the eighth over has become a distant memory, with Abid Ali and Azhar Ali taking firm control over the second Test against Zimbabwe with a partnership that has spanned almost the entirety of the first two sessions, and remained unbroken as the players took tea. Both the batters are closing in on centuries, while the stand has stretched to 160, and Zimbabwe are looking increasingly out of ideas.

Pakistan resumed after lunch at a much higher tempo than was the case in the morning, with the hour following the break especially productive. Donald Tiripano, among the brighter lights for Zimbabwe in the first Test, was especially lackadaisical, his lines and lengths wavering constantly as the batsmen picked up a boundary just about every over. Azhar was especially proficient at creating gaps backward of square and through the midwicket area, while full deliveries were expertly leant on and timed through the covers by Abid.

With the ball doing little, and little on offer from the surface, Zimbabwe would be disappointed at not having maintained their disciplines and waited for the batters to make mistakes. The frustration began to show as the session wore on, and that bred even more waywardness on the part of the bowlers.

Zimbabwe managed to convince the umpires to get the ball changed after 53 overs, but that did not herald a change of fortune. If anything, things went from bad to worse as a long-hop from Tendai Chisoro was walloped by Abid into short leg, where Roy Kaia was stationed. It caught the side of the left knee, and Kaia was in agony for several minutes before being stretchered off, adding another potential injury to Zimbabwe’s long casualty list.

Earlier, Pakistan opted to bat after winning the toss, with the most striking bit of news the decision to hand a debut to 36-year old Tabish Khan. The reasons for excluding Faheem Ashraf, entering perhaps the most promising phase of a young Test career, weren’t quite satisfactorily explained, and the omission meant Pakistan’s tail was somewhat extended.

Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava, as they did in the first Test, gave little away by way of scoring opportunities, bogging the two openers down. Butt looked a little indecisive against deliveries around his off stump, with both bowlers working him over as the dot balls began to mount. It was the change of pace that worked, with Ngarava banging one in short that hustled Butt as he tried to pull over midwicket. No timing meant he would never clear the man, and Zimbabwe had an early breakthrough.

It wasn’t until the over before drinks in a first hour that Zimbabwe dominated that the shackles began to be broken. Azhar got Tiripano off for a boundary on either side of the wicket to tick the scoreboard over, and from thereon, a touch of sloppiness seeped its way into Zimbabwe’s game. Abid was significantly more circumspect with the former Pakistan captain taking charge of the scoring, but a loose over from Chisoro allowed the opener to get a couple of fours away too, and get himself settled.

Much of the remaining session was somewhat event-free, and Pakistan have never really looked back since. For Zimbabwe, a promising first session turned into a desperate second, with no reprieve in sight as the players gear up for the final phase of play today.