Carlisle completes 1,000 runs as Zimbabwe make slow progress

Nagpur, India, February 21: Zimbabwean captain Stuart Carlisle completed a milestone 1,000 runs during the first cricket Test against India here on Thursday.

Carlisle put on 48 for the unfinished second-wicket stand with Alistair Campbell (28 not out) as Zimbabwe batted cautiously to reach 60-1 at lunch on the opening day after electing to bat on an easy-paced pitch.

The Zimbabwean captain, playing his 26th Test, became the fifth batsman in the current squad to score 1,000 runs when he square-drove seamer Sanjay Bangar for a four.

He steadied the innings with Campbell after the dismissal of opener Trevor Gripper for five in the day's eighth over.

Gripper edged an away-going delivery from left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan to be caught by wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta, who dived to his right to bring off a low catch.

Zaheer, returning to the squad after being dropped for a three-Test home series against England, conceded just eight runs in his impressive five-over opening spell on a wicket which favoured neither seamers nor spinners.

Leg-spinner Anil Kumble, introduced in the 13th over, posed no threat in his initial overs as Carlisle and Campbell batted steadily to help their team survive the early blow.

The left-handed Campbell played a few attacking shots, including a straight-driven boundary off seamer Javagal Srinath, in his unbeaten 55-ball knock.

Carlisle has so far hit three boundaries in his 94-ball innings.

India preferred all-rounder Bangar to middle-order batsman Virender Sehwag, while Zimbabwe left out Craig Wishart, Dion Ebrahim and Mpumelelo Mbangwa for the first match of a two-Test series.