Close Zimbabwe 304 for 7 (A Flower 138*, Friend 10*) need another 10 runs to avoid an innings defeat South Africa are still firm favourites, but this will be remembered as Andy Flower's match. With little rest after keeping wicket through SA's massive total of 600 for 3, Flower has followed his first-innings 142 with another epic knock to become the first keeper to score two centuries in the same Test. His 138 not out has lifted Zimbabwe, who have passed 300 for the first time against South Africa, to within ten runs of avoiding the innings defeat.

Flower batted for six hours today – he's now faced 346 balls, and hit 18 of them for four – and although he showed understandable signs of tiredness he hung on to the close. But apart from 18-year-old Hamilton Masakadza (85), no-one stayed with him for long. South Africa have now taken seven wickets, and Flower has been reunited with Travis Friend, who helped him add 75 rapid runs in the first innings.

With one whole day to play, Andy Flower will have to break a lot more records if South Africa aren't to wrap up victory tomorrow morning. But it will have been much harder for them than they expected.

4.45pm Zimbabwe 293 for 7 (A Flower 133*, Friend 4*) need another 21 to avoid an innings defeat

Andy Flower was back in the old routine as the day went on - doing a fair impersonation of a beacon on a dark night. As he motored on towards 150, wickets fell steadily at the other end, with no one in the middle order able to give Flower the same support as Hamilton Masakadza.

Guy Whittall scored only 3 before being pinned in front of his stumps by Claude Henderson. Heath Streak managed a few characteristically lusty blows before falling to the combined forces of the world's two leading allrounders, caught one-handed at slip by Jacques Kallis off Shaun Pollock. Flower, on 133 not out, seemed to be merely delaying the inevitable.

Tea Zimbabwe 249 for 5 (A Flower 115*, Whittall 0*) need another 65 runs to avoid an innings defeat

The wicket of Grant Flower shortly before the tea interval maintained South Africa's stranglehold on the first Test. Flower mistimed Makhaya Ntini straight to Boeta Dippenaar in the covers to fall for 16 and leave the Zims 243 for 5.

Standing in the way of South Africa's third consecutive innings win over Zimbabwe was Andy Flower, who had moved to his second century of the match with a mixture of cheeky reverse-sweeps and majestic cover-drives.

But Flower was fighting a lone hand now.

1.20pm Zimbabwe 218 for 4 (A Flower 100*, G Flower 2*) need another 96 runs to avoid an innings defeat

Andy Flower became the second Zimbabwean to hit two centuries in a Test - his younger brother Grant was the first - as Zimbabwe fought hard to prevent South Africa taking the lead in the two-Test series. Flower reached his 12th Test century with a reverse-sweep for four off left-arm spinner Claude Henderson, one of many memorable strokes on a day when Zimbabwe could have been aiming only for survival.

But four overs earlier his innovative fourth-wicket partnership with Hamilton Masakadza had come to an end. Masakadza was given out caught off bat and pad by Boeta Dippenaar off the bowling of Henderson for 85 to leave Zimbabwe 211 for 4. He had added 186 with Flower, and narrowly missed the distinction of centuries in his first two Tests.

Andy was joined by Grant as Zimbabwe battled to avoid their third consecutive innings defeat in Tests against South Africa.

Lunch Zimbabwe 188 for 3 (Masakadza 74*, A Flower 89*) need another 126 runs to avoid an innings defeat

Andy Flower and Hamilton Masakadza, the old-timer and the new boy, continued to thwart South Africa's bid to maintain their 100% record in Tests against Zimbabwe. By lunch they had extended their fourth-wicket partnership to 163, comfortably Zimbabwe's best against South Africa for any wicket.

For a man playing only his second Test, the 18-year-old Masakadza wasn't afraid to play his shots and even reverse-swept Claude Henderson's slow left-arm for consecutive boundaries. He did have one stroke of luck in the last over before lunch, though, edging Lance Klusener through the slips for four.

Flower continued to fight hard, and was just 11 runs away from his second century of the match. Only one man has ever done that for Zimbabwe - his brother, Grant.

Day 4, 11.15am Zimbabwe 149 for 3 (Masakadza 56*, A Flower 73*), need another 165 runs to avoid an innings defeat

Hamilton Masakadza's dream start to his Test career continued when he reached a hard-earned half-century. In his first two Tests, Masakadza has now collected a hundred against West Indies and a fifty against South Africa. And he only turned 18 a month ago.

The Andy Flower show went on at the other end as a partnership which began at the distinctly unpromising score of 25 for 3 reached 124. Flower's tally for the match was now 215, only five behind Gary Kirsten.

Day 4, 12 overs in Zimbabwe 122 for 3 (Masakadza 46*, A Flower 57*), need another 192 runs to avoid an innings defeat

Zimbabwe got through the first three-quarters of an hour without losing another wicket as Andy Flower went to his second fifty of the match and Hamilton Masakadza kept him company.

Shaun Pollock opened the bowling with himself and Jacques Kallis but was forced into a double change after 10 overs, turning to Claude Henderson and Makhaya Ntini. Flower remained in command as his match tally headed towards 200, and Masakadza came out of his shell to upper-cut Pollock for two fours over the slip-and-gully cordon.

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