Location: Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
Series: South Africa Tour of Zimbabwe 2025
Match: 2nd Test, Day 2 in progress Sa 483 (4 wkts, 91 Ov)
Hero of the Match (so far): Wiaan Mulder – 273* and counting
Table of Contents
🌅 A New Dawn for South Africa: Confidence in Transition
Mulder’s Masterpiece in BulawayoIn. the heart of Bulawayo, under the searing July sun, South Africa is scripting a Test match tale for the ages. The Queens Sports Club is no stranger to great cricketing battles, but what’s unfolding here is special — not just in numbers but in emotion, timing, and leadership.Wiaan Mulder, not the first name you’d imagine to carry the Proteas batting unit, stood tall when it mattered the most. With regular captain Keshav Maharaj unavailable, leadership passed onto the all-rounder. Many expected steady hands. What they got was a storm
🧊 Early Morning Blues Turn into a Batting Symphony
South Africa lost both openers inside the first hour. The crowd cheered. Zimbabwe’s bowlers were on fire. There was movement, pressure, and a sense of early collapse. The ball kissed edges, stumps were threatened, and hope was alive for the hosts.
But cricket is a game of sessions. And that morning session soon became history.
Wiaan Mulder walked in at No. 4 — confident, calm, and composed. At first, he defended with grit. He looked around the field, took singles, and allowed himself to settle. And then, something clicked. A switch flipped. The boundaries started flowing. Cover drives turned crisp, pulls were majestic, and the timing was immaculate.
He didn’t just survive the early storm — he rode it and then controlled it.
🤝 Building Partnerships: The True Sign of a Test Titan
Test cricket isn’t just about individual scores. It’s about partnerships. And Mulder understood that.
First, he stitched together a gritty stand with David Bedingham. The two pushed Zimbabwe back with patience and discipline. They didn’t try anything flashy. They defended the good balls and dispatched the loose ones. It was old-school Test batting, and it was beautiful.
When Bedingham departed after a well-made fifty, it was time for Lhuan-dre Pretorius to join the show. And what followed was pure delight. Mulder shifted gears, and Pretorius matched his tempo. The duo batted with purpose. They didn’t let Zimbabwe settle. The scoring rate soared. Fielders chased leather, and bowlers lost rhythm.
The pitch wasn’t doing much. But it didn’t need to. South Africa made the most of every opportunity. It was a batting clinic — not just in execution but in temperament.
🎯 Wiaan Mulder’s Double Century: Grace Under Pressure
There’s a particular silence that falls over a stadium when a batter moves into the 190s. Every run feels heavier. Every ball matters more. But Mulder made it look easy.
A crisp boundary through the off-side brought up his double-century. No wild celebration. Just a quiet raise of the bat. He knew this wasn’t just a milestone — it was a message.
Mulder’s knock wasn’t filled with luck or edge-of-the-seat escapes. It was pure class. Straight bat. High elbow. Late cuts. Textbook stuff. The type of innings that juniors will be taught in coaching manuals.
But what truly stood out was his focus. Even after 200, there was no lapse in concentration. He continued playing every ball on its merit. For a captain to do this, especially in foreign conditions, speaks volumes about his mindset.
⚔️ Zimbabwe’s Fight: Grit Without Reward
To say Zimbabwe didn’t try would be unfair. They did. In fact, they started brilliantly. The opening spells had venom. Their bowlers bowled in the right areas. They set attacking fields. Their captain kept encouraging the troops. And they even created chances — half-edges, close LBW shouts, a dropped catch here and there.
But this is where experience matters. When things don’t go your way, it’s easy to lose heart. And slowly, that discipline started to fade.
The bowling lost its bite. The fielders began moving slower. The body language dropped. And South Africa took advantage.
Zimbabwe tried mixing things up. They brought in spin early. Tried short balls. Changed angles. But nothing seemed to work against Mulder and his partners. Every experiment backfired. The Proteas batters were simply in a different zone.
đź’Ą Dewald Brevis Joins the Party
If Wiaan Mulder was the calm artist, Dewald Brevis was the rock star.
Coming in late on Day 1 and resuming on Day 2, Brevis showed he wasn’t just there to support — he had his own fireworks to display. His 20-ball stay was short, but it was filled with intent. A six here. A flashy drive there. His fearless approach added flair to the already commanding innings.
Brevis didn’t look overawed by the situation. He came, he assessed, and he executed.
If anything, his presence ensured that Zimbabwe couldn’t relax even for a single over. While Mulder held one end like a fortress, Brevis kept the scoreboard ticking from the other. It was the perfect blend of class and aggression.
🧠South Africa’s Tactical Brilliance
There’s more to this performance than just batting numbers. South Africa’s tactics have been spot on.
- Batting first: Choosing to bat was brave. On a surface with early morning movement, it was a risk. But that risk paid off.
- Controlled aggression: Instead of going bang-bang, they played traditional cricket. Let the ball age, wear down the bowlers, and then accelerate.
- Utilising partnerships: Each batter had a role. No one tried to overdo things. They built foundations and allowed the innings to grow session by session.
- Mental domination: Zimbabwe’s spirits were broken not with sixes but with relentless fours, patient nudges, and controlled gameplay.
📉 Zimbabwe’s Missed Opportunities
If they revisit the footage, Zimbabwe will have regrets.
- Dropped catches: You cannot drop batters like Mulder and hope to win. Simple as that.
- Overstepping no-balls: At least one of Mulder’s edges was negated due to a front-foot no-ball. That’s a cardinal sin in modern cricket.
- Fielding lapses: While the energy was great initially, it dipped rapidly. This lack of intensity allowed South Africa to capitalize.
🧩 What Happens Next?
As Day 2 progresses, all eyes remain on Mulder. Will he get to 300? Will South Africa declare before tea? These are the questions swirling in the commentary box.
But beyond the numbers, there’s something poetic about this match. A young captain, trusted with responsibility, delivering one of the finest knocks in recent South African history. A team, in transition, playing old-school Test cricket with fresh energy. And an opponent, desperate to find answers, learning hard lessons.
🌍 Test Cricket Is Alive and Glorious
For those who say Test cricket is dying, this match is your rebuttal.
We’ve seen:
- Grit.
- Drama.
- Class.
- Pressure.
- Strategy.
And above all, a story. A story of a young man standing tall, against the odds, in a foreign land, wearing his team’s badge not just on his shirt but in his soul.
🎤 Final Word: A Captain, A Statement, A Memory
Wiaan Mulder’s 266* is more than a score. It’s a declaration — that South Africa, even without some of its stars, has depth, grit, and leadership.
This is the kind of innings people talk about years later. “Were you watching when Mulder scored that double hundred?” “Remember the Bulawayo Test?” This is what makes Test cricket eternal.
As Zimbabwe regroups and prepares to bat, they’ll know they aren’t just chasing runs. They’re chasing a moment that’s already become history.
Whether they respond with fight or falter under pressure remains to be seen. But one thing is certain — Mulder has already won the crowd, the day, and possibly the series.
Stay tuned as Day 3 approaches — because in Bulawayo, the story is far from over.
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