BULAWAYO: Zimbabwe live to fight another day after an unbroken partnership of 94 between Sikandar Raza and Peter Moor gave them the lead against West Indies on the fourth day of the second Test at Queens Sports Club.

Sikandar and Moor came together with Zimbabwe reeling on 46-4 in their second innings on Wednesday, still needing 76 runs to make the West Indies bat again.

By the close they had carried the home side to 140 for four to claim an 18-run lead, with Sikandar adding his second half-century in a match where he has also claimed a five-wicket haul.

Earlier, Shane Dowrich and Jason Holder both scored centuries before the West Indies bowlers struck.

After Dowrich and Holder shared a record 212-run stand for the eighth wicket to carry the West Indies to a first-innings total of 448 all out on the fourth morning, fast bowler Kemar Roach picked up two wickets before lunch.

Pacer Shannon Gabriel and leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo followed up with a wicket apiece in the second session before Moor and Sikandar steadied the innings.

Zimbabwe’s chances of ending an 11-match losing streak in Tests had looked good when Sikandar’s maiden five-wicket haul reduced West Indies to 230-7 on the third afternoon.

But Dowrich and Holder constructed the West Indies’ highest eighth-wicket partnership in history, guiding the visitors to stumps on 374-7 before continuing their assault on Wednesday.

Holder enjoyed some luck on 78 when he was dropped by Regis Chakabva off Graeme Cremer, and made the most of it as he went on to score 110.

Dowrich brought up his maiden Test hundred with a towering six off Cremer, but the partnership was finally ended in the following over when the wicket-keeper/batsman was trapped lbw for 103 by Tendai Chisoro.

Having gained his maiden Test wicket, Chisoro went on to bowl Holder in his next over before wrapping up the innings when he trapped Roach lbw.

The left-arm spinner finished with 3-113, while Sikandar ended with 5-99.

Zimbabwe made a horrific start when Roach dismissed the two openers in consecutive overs.

Craig Ervine and Brendan Taylor attempted to resurrect the innings but Taylor was trapped lbw by Gabriel before Ervine was bowled by Bishoo for 22.

Scoreboard

ZIMBABWE (1st Innings) 326 (H. Masakadza 147, Sikandar Raza 80, P.J. Moor 52; K.A.J. Roach 3-44).

WEST INDIES (1st Innings, overnight 374-7):

K.C. Brathwaite c Masakadza b Cremer 32
K.O.A. Powell c Ervine b Mpofu 90
D. Bishoo c and b Sikandar 23
K.A. Hope lbw b Sikandar 1
S.D. Hope b Sikandar 40
R.L. Chase lbw b Sikandar 32
J. Blackwood c Cremer b Sikandar 5
S.O. Dowrich lbw b Chisoro 103
J.O. Holder b Chisoro 110
K.A.J. Roach lbw b Chisoro 0
S.T. Gabriel not out 0

EXTRAS (B-3, LB-3, NB-1) 7

TOTAL (all out, 178.2 overs) 448

FALL OF WKTS: 1-76, 2-131, 3-135, 4-163, 5-219, 6-225, 7-230, 8-442, 9-443.

BOWLING: Mpofu 28-10-55-1; Mire 5-2-5-0 (1nb); Cremer 52-8-161-1; Sikandar Raza 48-12-99-5; Chisoro 41.2-9-113-3; Masakadza 4-1-9-0.

ZIMBABWE (2nd Innings):

H. Masakadza b Roach 5
S.F. Mire lbw b Roach 0
C.R. Ervine b Bishoo 22
B.R.M. Taylor lbw b Gabriel 10
P.J. Moor not out 39
Sikandar Raza not out 58

EXTRAS (B-1, LB-5) 6

TOTAL (for four wkts, 32 overs) 140

FALL OF WKTS: 1-5, 2-8, 3-23, 4-46.

BOWLING (to-date): Gabriel 13-6-16-1l Roach 12-7-14-2; Brathwaite 9-1-19-0; Holder 12-2-29-0; Bishoo 13-3-38-1; Chase 2-0-7-0; Blackwood 6-3-11-0.