Barry McCarthy’s four-wicket haul puts Ireland in control against Zimbabwe

Ireland lead by 76 runs with nine second-innings wickets left

Ireland bowler Barry McCarthy took four wickets to help restrict Zimbabwe to 267 in the Test match in Bulawayo. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images
Ireland bowler Barry McCarthy took four wickets to help restrict Zimbabwe to 267 in the Test match in Bulawayo. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Test Match, Day 2 of 5: Ireland 260 (A McBrine 90no, M Adair 78, L Tucker 33; B Muzarabani 7-58, R Ngarava 2-65) & 83-1 (A Balbirnie 32no, P Moor 30) lead Zimbabwe 267 (N Welch 90, B Muzarabani 47; B McCarthy 4-75, A McBrine 3-59, M Adair 2-56) by 76 runs

Ireland lead Zimbabwe by 76 runs with nine second-innings wickets remaining after the second day of play in their one-off Test in Bulawayo.

After being bowled out for 260 in the first innings, Ireland limited the hosts to just a seven-run advantage before reaching 83 for one at the close.

Resuming on 72 for one, Zimbabwe lost wickets at regular intervals, with Barry McCarthy taking career-best figures of four for 75.

READ SOME MORE

Ireland looked set for a first-innings lead when Nick Welch’s impressive knock came to an end on 90, leaving Zimbabwe on 200 for nine.

But Blessing Muzarabani, who had taken seven wickets in Ireland’s first innings, and Trevor Gwandu put on 67 for the final wicket before Muzarabani was bowled by Matthew Humphreys for 47.

Ireland got off to a much better start in their second innings than in their first, with Peter Moor caught behind for 30 but captain Andy Balbirnie unbeaten on 32 at stumps.

  • Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
  • Listen to the Counter Ruck podcast for the best rugby chat and analysis