DHAKA, April 29, 2025 (BSS) - Zimbabwe leg spinner Vincent Masekesa refused to give in despite Bangladesh’s apparent upper-hand in the second and final cricket Test, saying that they will come hard tomorrow to control the things again.

Bangladesh, though, headed for taking a complete control of the Test, a late flurry of wicket saw them end the Day 2 at 291-7, leading Zimbabwe by only 64 runs.
 
With Mehidy Hasan Miraz (16) and Taijul Islam (5) still in the crease, Bangladesh still have the hopes of making the lead bigger one, that could be decisive specially on a pitch which was increasingly deteriorating. 

“They’re playing well, no doubt. But we’re still very much in this game,” Masekesa said after the Day’s play. “We’ll fight hard to keep things under control tomorrow,” he added.

Masekesa, on his debut game, indeed denied Bangladesh a full control on the game by claiming 3-44, a figure that included the wickets of Mominul Haque (33) and skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto (23) who looked well set and throw Zimbabwe out of the game after Shadman Islam laid a solid foundation by hitting 120.

Mominul Haque who added 76-run with Shadman for the second wicket was Masekesa’s debut wicket. Like a traditional legspinner he lured Mominul with a flighted delivery. The experienced batter looked determined for a slog sweep whatever came to his way and eventually skied it high toward deep mid wicket.

His flight delivery also helped him account for Shanto’s wicket in the crucial moment, triggering a collapse that saw Bangladesh lose four wickets for 20 runs to squander the healthy platform. 

“Honestly, I wasn’t expecting that [first wicket] at that exact moment,” Masekesa said. “But it meant a lot. Representing Zimbabwe in Test cricket is a big opportunity, and I was really happy,” he added.

Although he got those two wickets without doing anything extra, Masekesa consistently landed the ball in right areas to keep Bangladesh batters on toes. 

“Later in the day, the wicket tends to offer more help for spinners,” he explained. “But it’s also about putting the ball in the right areas and letting the pitch do the work.”

Masekesa however credited some of the game’s finest wrist spinners for shaping his journey and the list included Bangladesh leg spinner Rishad Hossain too.

“I am always a big fan of leg-spinners,” Masekesa said. “Shane Warne obviously but most of the Zimbabwe leg-spinners. Growing up when Graeme Cremer was there. I also look up to Adil Rashid from England, Chahal from India... Zampa from Australia. Even Rishad from Bangladesh.”