Spinners George Dockrell (2-29) and Andy McBrine (2-52) had helped reduce Zimbabwe to 171 for 7, and at that stage Ireland had edged ahead. However Raza held his nerve, finding a suitable ally in debutant Wellington Mazakadza (10) as they shared in a vital 8th wicket stand of 38.

Former Lisburn and Northern Knights batsman Craig Ervine was the other player to score a half century in the Zimbawe innings - he struck five boundaries in a confident 60 from 78 balls, before becoming McBrine's second victim. George Dockrell was the best Irish bowler on view, removing the dangerous Sean Williams (24) and skipper Elton Chigumbura (16), but couldn't dislodge the stubborn Raza.

Earlier Gary Wilson top scored with an unbeaten 70 as the Irish recovered from a middle innings wobble to post 219 for 8. Wilson shared stands of 83 for the 4th wicket with Ed Joyce (53) and an unbroken 43 in just 28 balls with Andy McBrine (23*) for the ninth.

Joyce and Wilson rebuilt the Irish innings after Paul Stirling (24), William Porterfield (9) and Andrew Balbirnie (5) fell in quick succession. Their repair job saw the Irish reach 137 for 3 with 15 overs left and with a solid platform, hopes of a total of 250 looked feasible.

However Joyce's dismissal saw the Irish lose five wickets for 39 runs - one of which was Kevin O'Brien (16) playing in his 250th match - and at 176 for 8, they were in deep trouble before Wilson and McBrine's counter-attack.

Zimbabwe leapfrog Ireland in 10th place in the ICC rankings table, but the Irish have a chance of instant revenge when the teams meet again at the same venue on Sunday before the series concludes on Tuesday.

Ian Callender (Belfast Telegraph) reports:
ZIMBABWE enjoyed a revenge win for their World Cup defeat to Ireland in Hobart as the lowest ranked Test nation and the leading Associate team produced another thriller. The final margin was two wickets with six balls to spare, close enough for Ireland to believe they can still win the three-match series which continues tomorrow morning.

The decision to omit Niall O’Brien – top scorer against Australia in August – remains the major talking point because Gary Wilson, rather than skipper William Porterfield, was sent to the post-match press conference. O’Brien’s potential runs could have been the difference between victory and defeat and the inclusion of Stuart Thompson as a fourth seamer in a team with three slow bowlers on a spinners’ track came back to haunt the selectors. Thompson didn’t bowl and was dismissed for one.

Ed Joyce (53) and Wilson (70 not out) – both faced 88 balls - put on 83 for the fourth wicket but from 137 for three, albeit in the 36th over, Ireland lost five wickets for 39 and it needed 23 from 14 balls by No 10 Andy McBrine to get Ireland up to 219 for eight. Quite why Sean Williams, one of the three Zimbabwe slow bowlers, did not bowl his full quota was a mystery but Wilson and, especially, McBrine, who had managed just a single from the five balls he faced from the off spinner were very grateful.

Home captain Elton Chigumbura chose to bring back his opening bowlers for the last two overs and the North West Warriors skipper helped himself to two fours and a six, and scoring off each of the seven balls he faced. Wilson also scored off his final six deliveries, including a last ball four – only the fourth of his innings and his first since the 28th over!

The huge boundaries at the Harare Sports Club, particularly square of the wicket, restricted both sides, both finishing with exactly 18 and only Joyce, impressively to deep mid-wicket, and McBrine cleared the fence. The Ireland tally is deceptive, however with exactly a third of their boundaries coming in the first six overs, five of them to Paul Stirling, before his run-a-ball 24 ended with a tame shot to the mid-wicket fielder.

Joyce enjoyed a life on 36 when he gave a catch, he thought was so easy, to long-on that he started walking back to the pavilion! So when Malcolm Waller spilled it, he walked back to his crease but missed out on what could have been two runs. In the end, it didn’t matter because the Zimbabwe batsmen did just enough. Ireland were always a wicket behind where they wanted to be in the home side’s chase and former Lisburn player Craig Ervine laid the platform with 60 off 78 balls and Sikander Raza (60 not out) saw them home.

Craig Young was again left out so John Mooney took the new ball and although he and Andy McBrine, the latter in his first over inside the powerplay, each took an early wicket, the runs came far too freely, Zimbabwe averaging five an over to the first drinks break and the 100 was up in the 21st over, just after George Dockrell took the third wicket, courtesy of a superb stumping by Wilson. Encouragingly, moving forward, Dockrell (2-29) was the pick of the Ireland bowlers and after his troubles of the summer – mainly due to a lack of big match action – he seems in a good place to resume his role as Ireland’s No 1 slow bowler.

The third seam bowler’s spot and a ‘death bowler’ is still up for grabs, though, after Kevin O’Brien’s four overs went for 24, Mooney’s comeback over cost nine and Tim Murtagh’s last – and what proved to be the last of the game, went for 10 including two boundaries. They have only one day to work out their plans for game two, a game Ireland must win if they are to have a chance of keeping 10th place, above Zimbabwe, by Tuesday night.

CricketEurope and Ian Callender (Belfast Telegraph)