Updated - Day 5 close

Zimbabwe 321; Pakistan 77/1 (Ali Naqvi 24*, Ijaz Ahmed 16*).

Zimbabwe failed to seize the initiative in the final session of play, as Pakistan began their fightback.

The Zimbabwe innings ended rather disappointingly shortly after tea, with two 'soft' dismissals by the last two batsmen.

Shortly after Grant Flower had passed 150 and achieved his second-best Test score, beating his 151 against New Zealand last September, Andrew Whittall went for an unnecessary big hit off the last ball of an over. He succeeded only in skying a catch towards square leg, which was taken by the keeper. The batsmen had unwisely crossed, meaning new batsman 'Pom' Mbangwa had to face the next over from Waqar. Second ball he swung his bat at the ball and gave wicket-keeper Rashid Latif his sixth catch of the innings, none of them too difficult. It meant that Grant Flower became the second Zimbabwean to carry his bat through a Test innings, after Mark Dekker in Rawalpindi in 1993/94, but it prevented Zimbabwe from making as many runs as they should have done.

Saeed Anwar began confidently for Pakistan, with Heath Streak not at his best, and batting conditions at their most favourable in the match so far. Saeed's was the one wicket to fall, as Guy Whittall did his frequent trick of taking a surprise wicket; Saeed flashed to be caught by the keeper. Zimbabwe did have the chance of one more wicket, also off Guy Whittall. Ali Naqvi was surprised by Whittall's slower ball, which he tried to pull and skied towards mid-on. Bryan Strang, substituting for Trevor Madondo, seemed to lose the ball in the fading light, and when he picked it up was unable to move quickly enough to reach the catch.

A longer innings would also have enabled Zimbabwe to put more pressure on Pakistan at the end of the second day. The weather appears to be clearing slowly, and Zimbabwe may have to work hard tomorrow to stay in the match.

Teatime report

Zimbabwe 102/4 (36 overs) (G Flower 42*, A Flower 38*)

Alastair Campbell did not find much agreement among the critics when he decided to bat on winning the toss, and when Zimbabwe slumped to 38/3, he was clearly facing some flak. However, fine batting by the Flower brothers had considerably improved the situation by tea.

Grant Flower began the innings positively, taking seven runs off Waqar's opening over. But left-hander Dirk Viljoen, making his debut, edged his third ball low to the keeper's left. Viljoen is a talented player but has not yet produced scores in keeping with his ability. When was the last time a specialist opener played in a Test before scoring a first-class fifty? And there is another specialist batsman, Trevor Madondo, also making his debut in the same position.

Murray Goodwin, who played some valuable innings on tour, also failed, edging a fine delivery from Waqar, who was swinging the ball viciously, mostly away from the right-hander. Alistair Campbell, so often at his best in a crisis situation, began very confidently and played some cracking pulls and drives. Why has a batsman of such outstading talent still failed to score a Test century after 28 Tests? Part of the answer, at least, became clear when he flashed impatiently at Azhar Mahmood and edged a third catch to Rashid Latif. When Waqar was relieved, he had the one-day-type figures of 6-1-34-2.

Then the Flower brothers stood firm. Grant showed his usual patience, but played some good strokes, especially when he took a step down the pitch to hit off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq over mid-on for six. Shoaib bowled with great energy, while Azhar's main aim seemed to be to restrict the scoring by bowling as wide as legally possible. He frustrated out Campbell and had bowled 9 overs for only 3 runs before Andy Flower reached wide off the off stump and slashed him for two fours. His figures ruined, with 11 runs now conceded, Azhar retired in humiliation to the outfield.

Andy has hit 7 fours to date in a confident innings, most of not all of them between cover and third man. The weather remains heavily overcast; there was a brief spot of drizzle at the start of the tea interval, and play will undoubtedly end early.

Close of play report

Zimbabwe 151/5 (54.5 overs) (G Flower 69*, Madondo 11*)

Bad light stopped play at about 5pm local time today with Zimbabwe still in a measure of trouble. The main bonus for them in that Grant Flower is still there and has not given a chance so far; in addition to that, Trevor Madondo, the first black player to be selected for Zimbabwe for his batting rather than his pace bowling, has looked very impressive.

The vital partnership between the Flower brothers ended not too long after tea when Andy, in an apparent loss of concentration, pushed outside the off stump without using his feet, and gave a fourth successive catch to Rashid Latif off the energetic Shoaib Akhtar. Waqar Younis returned to bowl with Guy Whittall at the crease, and trapped him lbw with a low full toss.

This brought the 21-year-old Madondo to the crease. He quickly showed a willingness to attack the overpitched delivery, getting off the mark with a sweet off-drive for three and then driving a Waqar full toss to the sightscreen for four. Next he pulled Saqlain fiercely to the midwicket boundary for four. But, when he appeared to lose sight of another Waqar full toss that swung into his pads, the umpires offered the light to the batsmen, who had no hesitation in heading for home.

Zimbabwe v Pakistan First Test Day 2

Lunch report

Zimbabwe 228/6 (83 overs) (G Flower 114*, Streak 26*)

The morning session, on the whole, has gone to Zimbabwe, thanks to a valuable unbroken seventh-wicket partnership between Grant Flower and Heath Streak. This offset the early loss of Trevor Madondo, who was unable to evade a lifter from Waqar Younis and was caught low down at first slip.

Flower has still not given a chance in his innings of 370 minutes so far, although he did edge a ball just short of second slip in the first over of the morning. Heath Streak, now promoted in the batting order ahead of Paul Strang, is a much better batsman than his Test average of 14 indicates, and is quite capable of finishing his career with some Test centuries to his credit. Apart from a little hesitation at times early in his innings, he has looked very solid, played a few handsome drives and pulls, and made the ideal partner for Grant Flower.

Grant has continued to bat solidly without getting bogged down, and became, without any alarms, the first Zimbabwean to score five Test centuries, and his first on the Queens ground. Dave Houghton and his brother Andy have both scored four. The Pakistani bowlers have done a steady job, with the occasional outstanding delivery or sharp lifter that the batsmen so far have been able to weather. With Paul Strang still to come, Zimbabwe can realistically set their sights on a total of 300 or more now. It is important that they achieved it in this match, as Wasim and Mushtaq will probably be back for the Harare Test!

Teatime report

Zimbabwe 310/8 (109 overs) (G Flower 149*, A Whittall 13*)

Zimbabwe duly passed the 300 mark with Grant Flower continuing to take centre stage. His partnership with Heath Streak was broken shortly after they had reached three figures together and just after the latter reached his fifty. Streak had just equalled his previous highest Test score of 53 against South Africa in Harare in 1995/96 when he slashed a ball uppishly straight to backward point.

Paul Strang did not last long before he edged a catch to the keeper, but Andrew Whittall showed that he is a better batsman than he is normally given credit for by playing a sensible supporting innings. When he first arrived at the crease, Grant appeared to have decided it was time to take some risks. He hit the negative medium-pacer Azhar for an astonishing shot high over the cover boundary and into the trees there; he lofted him for four over mid-off and then slashed him to square third man for a one-bounce four. But, as Whittall looked sound, he settled down again and concentrated on accumulation.

There is speculation now as to whether Grant will become the second Zimbabwean after Mark Dekker, also against Pakistan, to carry his bat through a Test innings. The sky is still overcast but quite bright, so it looks as if play will run its course today. Pakistan will probably be batting by then, and Zimbabwe have the chance of taking an unexpected advantage.

Day 3

Preview

The third day has turned out to be the crucial day of the match. Zimbabwe will need to bowl Pakistan out, or at least keep them in close check, if they are to stay in the match. The Pakistani batting is unpredictable, but they only need to take a small lead to put pressure on Zimbabwe.

As usual, the Zimbabwe bowling will rely on Heath Streak as its spearhead. He did not look particularly penetrative yesterday, but the pitch is playing very true and not giving any bowler much help. Paul Strang, with his leg-breaks, is also a key figure, but the Pakistanis are well known for their ability to handle spin.

The weather is again overcast, but the clouds are moving. Opinions differ as to whether this means sun or rain -- or no change at all. A light drizzle has started, enough to persuade groundsman Noel Peck to cover the pitch, but it may well blow away quickly, and play might still start on time. After four defeats in a row, I suspect Zimbabwe may be too well satisfied with a draw and would welcome some rain. Their main aim may be to restrict Pakistan today rather than bowl them out. The conditions, however, may give them a bit of help if they decide to attack.

Lunch report Day 3

Zimbabwe are back as a force to be reckoned with in Test cricket -- or so it seems, after a morning in which the inconsistent Pakistani batting wilted against a persistent Zimbabwe attack.

Zimbabwe did put up a good performance with the ball and in the field, but Pakistan contributed to their own downfall to an extent, with some poor shot selection. Heath Streak, in the first over of the day, had a good shout for lbw against Ali Naqvi, but on the whole looked rather innocuous. He had some fine spells on Zimbabwe's disastrous overseas tours, but today looked a mere shadow of his real self. His opening partner 'Pommy' Mbangwa looked more impressive, with probing line and length, and took the first two wickets to fall.

Ali Naqvi was first to go, driving rather loosely and edging a catch to Campbell at first slip. His overnight partner Ijaz Ahmed played at a ball that moved away and was caught at the wicket off a thin edge.

Inzamam-ul-Haq, the major thorn in Zimbabwe's flesh against Pakistan in the past, soon looked in dominating form, playing some powerful drives. He hammered Streak for 10 runs in an over, and then turned his attention to Paul Strang. Moving down the pitch, he hammered him past mid-on for a superb boundary. He then moved out again to drive straight, but Strang held on to a very good return catch.

The slide continued, as Moin Khan then hit a hard head-high catch to Andrew Whittall in the covers. Then Azhar Mahmood, first ball, was completely bamboozled by Strang's googly and trapped lbw, right back on his stumps. Yousuf Youhana is the one remaining specialist batsman, although he has not always looked comfortable against Strang, while Rashid Latif, after a slow

Zimbabwe have an unfortunate reputation of having opponents on the ropes and then letting them off the hook by allowing a

Tea report Day 3

This was a pretty uneventful afternoon session, but Pakistan will have a little more cause for satisfaction than Zimbabwe. Yousuf Youhana and Rashid Latif continued their dour fightback, with determination but few memorable strokes. A light drizzle in mid-session turned into a sharp shower, and a total of 28 minutes was lost, to be added to the end of play, weather and light permitting. The clouds are higher now, and the sun is shining for much of the time, so it may well be possible to complete the day's allocation of 90 overs.

The only wicket to fall came with the first over of the second new ball, bowled by Heath Streak on his 24th birthday. He has been pretty innocuous for most of the day, with occasional deliveries to remind us of his best. He produced a good straight ball, and Rashid moved right in front of his stumps to aim it through midwicket. The lbw decision seemed indisputable. In the meantime Yousuf had progressed to his maiden Test fifty, at the geriatic age, for Pakistan, of 23. Just before tea he cut viciously at Pommy Mbangwa, and Grant Flower in the gully leapt high to attempt what would have been a brilliant catch. The ball rebounded from his fingers for four, and he had to leave the field for repairs. This destroys his chance of a second entry into the record books for being on the field of play throughout a completed match -- the first occasion being when he scored 201 not out in Zimbabwe's only Test win to date, against Pakistan three years ago. tail-end recovery. They will now be looking to dismiss Pakistan for under 200 shortly after lunch, and it will be a test of the mettle of both sides this afternoon.

Day 4

Preview

Zimbabwe again found it rather difficult to bowl out the lower order after taking an advantage, but still managed to take a useful lead of 65 on first innings. Their difficulty in finishing off the Pakistani innings, however, left them with a very awkward eight overs before the close of play, when they lost two wickets.

Some time elapsed after tea before Yousuf Youhana was finally bowled through the gate by Guy Whittall, who showed much improved bowling form. Waqar Younis was quickly out, caught at second slip, but last man Shoaib Akhtar stuck around, giving Saqlain Mushtaq the chance to compile a few useful runs before he was finally lbw, right back on his stumps. Paul Strang had looked Zimbabwe's most impressive bowler, while Pommy Mbangwa bowled some good accurate spells and may well be a more permanent fixture in the Zimbabwean team in future.

Grant Flower, despite splitting his finger in attempting to catch Yousuf, came out to open the Zimbabwean second innings, but lost Dirk Viljoen without scoring again, lbw playing half-cock to Shoaib. Viljoen is talented and dedicated but he is hardly ready for Test cricket yet, as his first-class record indicates. Night-watchman Andrew Whittall had a difficult task to perform, against Waqar and Shoaib with the new ball, but he hung on gallantly until fending off a lifter to short leg in the final over of the day.

Zimbabwe begin the fourth day 80 runs ahead, and will be looking to set Pakistan over 300 to win. There is the ever-present danger of a batting collapse; whatever happens, it should be a fascinating day's play, with the game beautifully poised.

Lunch Day 4

After doing most things right over the first three days of the match, Zimbabwe began the fourth day by trying to throw it away. After some rather strokeless opening overs, Grant Flower surprisingly padded up to an inswinger from Waqar Younis, without playing a stroke, and was given out lbw. Alistair Campbell did not last long, giving his wicket away too easily again; trying to push the score along too soon, he reached for a wide delivery and was caught in the covers.

Murray Goodwin, after a slow start, dug in, and he found a similarly stable partner in Andy Flower. These two gave an object lesson in sensible batting, steadily increasing the scoring rate by waiting for the right delivery to hit, and they have taken Zimbabwe out of immediate danger. Goodwin in particular hit some very crisp boundaries when the ball was right, although he did occasionally slash and miss.

The Pakistan bowlers have produced some very good deliveries at times, but also more loose balls than they can afford at this stage of the game. The future course of the match may depend on whether they can split Zimbabwe's fifth-wicket pair. The weather is hot and generally sunny, although some think rain may come later in the day.

Tea report

This superb partnership between Murray Goodwin, now on the verge of his maiden Test century, and Andy Flower, approaching his fifth, has taken Zimbabwe into the ascendancy. They batted throughout the afternoon session and have now put on 181 runs together.

Pakistan has been handicapped by the absence of Waqar Younis since lunch, off the field with a broken toenail -- the sort of thing we thought he only did to others! In his absence the Pakistani heads have appeared to go down, and in the last half-hour before tea the batsmen seemed to be taking runs almost at will. Goodwin has impressed with some ferocious cutting, some good pulls and a few straight drives over the bowler's head. Andy Flower, facing at one stage a 7-2 field setting, nevertheless still often managed to pierce the off-side field with his cuts and cover drives, and was equally adept at paddling the ball down the leg side.

Pakistan look rather lethargic as they take the field now. The match is set in Zimbabwe's favour, and it will take some rather surprising developments to change that now. But then, surprise is no stranger to matches between these two countries.

Close of play

Murray Goodwin and Andy Flower carried their magnificent partnership to 277, a new Zimbabwe record, beating that of the Flower brothers for the fourth wicket in Zimbabwe's win over Pakistan in 1994/95. Then, as soon as Andy Flower reached his fifth Test century, Alistair Campbell declared, setting Pakistan 368 to win in a minimum of 105 overs.

Goodwin, who finished on a career-best 166, dominated the day. He played some superb strokes, pulling three sixes and lofting another over long-off. He survived a hard chance to backward point when 108, and had hit a ball just short of long leg after passing 50. Otherwise, his innings was virtually flawless. Flower, dropped off a low chance at slip when 57, played a fine supporting role. They were helped later in their innings by the absence of Waqar Younis and Saqlain Mushtaq from the attack due to minor injuries.

Campbell's declaration risked bad light stopping play early. The light held, but so did the Pakistani batsman, if one excludes Saeed Anwar, who had to be carried off the field after being hit in the box. There was no indication that Pakistan were going for the target, but the fact that no wicket fell all day after the first half-hour means that Zimbabwe face a difficult task in bowling out the tourists tomorrow, even in the weather holds.

Day 5

Preview

For the third time in three home Tests, Zimbabwe go into the final day hoping for a rare victory. Realistically, though, the odds look to be against them, when only two wickets fell yesterday on what is still a very sound pitch. Still, it is impossible to tell with Pakistan, and with their talent a surprise victory is not altogether out of the question, however unlikely.

Pakistan have a few walking wounded, and they certainly gave no impression last night that they had any thoughts of victory. They will be looking at 368 at a rate of almost four an over. Zimbabwe still have to overcome the trauma of the Colombo Test where, in the words of one of the party, they were left believing that, whatever they did, they would not be allowed to bowl a team out the second time. With David Shepherd standing in this Test, though, the umpiring is in good hands. Unless Pakistan make a bid for victory, Zimbabwe will probably aim to bowl more than the prescribed 90 overs in the day, just to show that when there's a will there's a way.

The general expectation is for a draw -- but it is a day when anything is possible.

Lunch report Day 5

Zimbabwe have made better progress towards victory, with three wickets in the morning session, than have Pakistan. The tourists, who have made no real attempt to push the score along, now require to score at almost five runs an over to reach what has become an increasingly unlikely target of 368.

Zimbabwe's first wicket was that of night-watchman Saqlain Mushtaq, who slashed at a ball from Heath Streak, and a thick edge was taken low to his right by keeper Andy Flower. This brought back Saeed Anwar, who had retired hurt overnight, and he was the one player to bat positively during the morning. His opening partner Ali Naqvi seemed to relish the sheet-anchor role, and managed just two runs off his first 55 balls today.

Ali did start to look more positive when Paul Strang came on to bowl, but could not adjust his gears. A miscued drive off Pommy Mbangwa led to a simple catch in the covers. Mbangwa again bowled a long, accurate spell and deserved more wickets. Streak again rarely looked dangerous, while Strang mixed good deliveries with rather more long hops than usual.

Not long before lunch, Saeed tried to chip a ball from Strang through midwicket, and Murray Goodwin, close in, reached far to his right to grasp the ball one-handed. Saeed stayed at the crease, maintaining it was a bump ball, but umpire David Shepherd had no doubt that it was a fair dismissal, and the television replay appeared to confirm the decision. Pakistan went in to lunch with their backs to the wall, and the afternoon session may well be exciting.

End of match report

The First Test between Zimbabwe and Pakistan duly faded out into a draw this evening, with Zimbabwe ahead on points for the third successive home Test.

Pakistan batted in relaxed fashion after tea, clearly certain that the pressure was off. They watched the second new ball go by outside the off stump for a couple of overs before helping themselves again. The pitch was too good and the Zimbabwe bowling not quite good enough, with Heath Streak below his best, for a positive result.

Moin Khan gave a very difficult chance on 47, edging a hook off Streak, with Andy Flower not quite able to complete the catch. He continued to bat with enterprise, and Yousuf Youhana was the first to go, only minutes later, after scoring his second fifty of the match. When he was caught by mid-on running round, hooking, Pakistan were as good as safe. Their task was eased with Paul Strang having to leave the field after injuring his hand taking a hard return.

The match continued as Moin moved towards his century but, when he too fell hooking to short fine leg, the captains agreed to call a halt. Grant Flower was justly named man of the match for his superb century which played the primary part in making Zimbabwe competitive again and laying the foundation for a winning position.

The Second Test begins at Harare Sports Club on Saturday. With Pakistan expecting all their players to be fit, it will be a much harder match for the home side.

Fifties details: Yousuf Youhana 115 balls, 144 min; Moin Khan 125 balls, 158 min.

John Ward (ZCU) Contributed by John Ward (zim@cricinfo.com)