Taylor Hits First Test Fifty in Over Five Years as Zimbabwe Reach 153/2 in Sharjah

Brendan Taylor hit his first Test fifty in over five years as Zimbabwe reached 153 for 2 on the first day of the opening Test against Afghanistan in Sharjah on Thursday.

The 40-year-old former captain was unbeaten on 56 off 70 balls, with five fours and three sixes, and reached his fifty with a single in the afternoon session.

It was Taylor's 13th fifty in Test cricket and his first since July 2021, when he made 92 against Bangladesh in Harare.

He returned to Test cricket in August 2025 after a three-and-a-half-year ban, and made 44 in his comeback match against New Zealand.

Captain Brian Bennett, leading Zimbabwe for the first time, was unbeaten on 15 at the other end after opener Ben Curran made 42 at the top of the order.

Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat first in the first Test at Sharjah in ten years.