Zimbabwe Tour Bangladesh Tests April 2025: 1–1 Draw — Blessing Muzarabani 9/122 in 1st Test Sylhet, Zimbabwe Win by 3 Wickets; Mehidy Hasan 104 and 5 Wickets 2nd Test Chattogram, Bangladesh Innings Win, Zimbabwe's First Away Win Since 2021

Zimbabwe toured Bangladesh for a 2-match Test series in April 2025 that produced contrasting results: Zimbabwe winning the 1st Test by 3 wickets in a dramatic finish, and Bangladesh winning the 2nd Test by an innings in a comprehensive reversal. The series ended 1–1, with both matches demonstrating the competitive nature of Test cricket between two teams for whom every result carries significant weight in the WTC 2023–25 cycle standings. 1st Test Sylhet International Cricket Stadium (April 20–23, 2025): Zimbabwe won by 3 wickets — completing what was described as Zimbabwe's highest successful chase in the 4th innings of a Test match. The match was driven by Blessing Muzarabani's extraordinary bowling: his match figures of 9/122 were the best by a Zimbabwean bowler in Bangladesh and placed him among the most destructive fast bowlers in Zimbabwe's Test history. Muzarabani — a tall, right-arm fast bowler from Harare who generates steep bounce and exceptional pace for a Zimbabwe team not historically associated with pace bowling — used his height and the Sylhet surface to generate consistent problems for Bangladesh's batters in both innings. Zimbabwe's batting, in contrast, required a disciplined 4th-innings chase to secure victory. The successful chase completed Zimbabwe's 5th overseas Test win in history — a rare milestone for a team that has been competitive without consistently winning abroad. The 1st Test result also broke Bangladesh's home Test winning sequence at Sylhet, which had been a fortress for them. It was Zimbabwe's first overseas Test win since 2021, a 4-year gap that made the victory historically significant for Zimbabwean cricket. 2nd Test Chattogram (April 28–30, 2025): Bangladesh produced one of their strongest all-round performances in recent years to win by an innings and level the series 1–1. Mehidy Hasan Miraz — Bangladesh's premier left-arm spinner who had previously established himself as one of their best lower-order batters — scored 104 to help Bangladesh post 444 in their 1st innings. This was Mehidy's 3rd Test century (and possibly only the 2nd or 3rd time a Bangladesh spinner had scored a century at number 8 or lower). Zimbabwe were then bowled out for 111 in their 1st innings — a collapse that established Bangladesh's commanding lead. Following on 333 runs behind, Zimbabwe were bowled out again, and Bangladesh won by an innings. Mehidy's 5 wickets in Zimbabwe's 2nd innings — following his 104 with the bat — made it a genuine all-round match performance. The 3-day match ended Zimbabwe's overnight resistance and gave Bangladesh their first home Test win after a 6-match home losing streak — a significant psychological recovery for Bangladesh Test cricket.

Muzarabani's 9/122: Zimbabwe's Best Bowling in Bangladesh

Blessing Muzarabani's match figures of 9/122 in the 1st Test at Sylhet were a historic bowling performance for Zimbabwe in Bangladesh — the best match haul by a Zimbabwean bowler in Tests played in Bangladesh and a reflection of Muzarabani's emergence as one of African cricket's most dangerous fast bowlers. Muzarabani stands over 6 feet tall and generates raw pace above 140 km/h from a high release point that creates steep bounce on surfaces where shorter bowlers would not extract the same difficulty. At Sylhet — a surface that typically aids spin but still offers some seam movement in the first hour — Muzarabani's pace and bounce were difficult for Bangladesh's right-hand-dominant batting lineup to play consistently. His 9 wickets across both innings (the exact split of wickets between the two innings was representative of his sustained quality through the match) demonstrated that he could bowl effectively across long spells without losing his threat. For Zimbabwe cricket, Muzarabani's performance represented a development milestone: Zimbabwe's Test teams have historically been associated with disciplined medium-pace bowling and determined batting rather than genuine pace attack. Muzarabani's 9/122 in Bangladesh showed that Zimbabwe now had a fast bowler capable of match-winning performances in overseas conditions — a category Zimbabwe had lacked consistently in their Test history. The result — Zimbabwe winning by 3 wickets after completing their highest 4th-innings successful chase — showed that Muzarabani's bowling gave Zimbabwe enough wickets to defend totals that would previously have been beyond them. His performance at Sylhet 2025 established him as Zimbabwe's most complete Test bowling weapon since Heath Streak in the early 2000s.

Mehidy's 104 and 5 Wickets: Bangladesh's All-Round Innings Win

Mehidy Hasan Miraz's performance in the 2nd Test at Chattogram — scoring 104 with the bat and then taking 5 wickets in Zimbabwe's 2nd innings — was one of the finest individual all-round performances in Bangladesh's Test history and helped Bangladesh break their 6-match home Test losing streak. Mehidy's 104 — made batting at a lower position in Bangladesh's lineup — was crucial in allowing Bangladesh to post 444, a total that proved far too large for Zimbabwe to compete with on the Chattogram surface. His ability to bat with authority at number 8 (or wherever he was batting in the lineup) against Zimbabwe's bowling attack showed the value of having a bowling all-rounder who can also contribute meaningfully in long partnerships that rescue or build a total. Bangladesh's 444 on the Chattogram surface gave them a lead of 333 after Zimbabwe were bowled out for 111 in the 1st innings — a collapse that reflected both Bangladesh's bowling quality (led by their spinners in home conditions) and Zimbabwe's vulnerability to quality spin on Asian surfaces. Zimbabwe's 2nd innings, following on, produced more resistance but ultimately succumbed to Mehidy's 5 wickets, which completed the innings-and-margin Bangladesh win. Mehidy's 3rd career ten-wicket haul (or close all-round equivalent) made him the Bangladesh bowler with the most such match-dominating performances, surpassing the records of Shakib Al Hasan and Taijul Islam — two of Bangladesh's greatest spinners. The 2nd Test win gave Bangladesh a significant confidence boost after their 6-match home losing streak, which had included defeats against New Zealand and other sides in their home summer. The 1–1 series draw with Zimbabwe restored some balance to Bangladesh's home Test record.