Zimbabwe host India in the first of a three-match T20I series, to be played at the Harare Sports Club, starting on Thursday, July 23. The two teams come into this series on the back of contrasting fortunes. The hosts recently defeated Bangladesh across Tests and ODIs (but lost the T20Is) while India tasted painful losses to Ireland and England. Zimbabwe know that they do not have enough experience in their ranks to challenge India. Nonetheless, they are also aware of the fact that the visitors, who were recently hammered 0-2 by Ireland and 0-4 by England, are going through their lowest phase.
India have also rested regular coach Gautam Gambhir for this trip, allowing the legendary VVS Laxman to take charge. While Shreyas Iyer continues to lead the side, the likes of Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube will have a lot to answer for since they are now senior players. Iyer was made India’s T20I captain after incumbent Suryakumar Yadav was stripped of his job earlier this year. However, Iyer did not have a good start to his tenure, losing the two series to Ireland and England, as mentioned. Ishan Kishan is another player who will be responsible for piling on the runs for India, as will top-order batter Abhishek Sharma.
Zimbabwe will rely on the expertise of their captain Sikandar Raza, who is a renowned player across the world. The experienced all-rounder has played with most of these Indian cricketers in the Indian Premier League and knows their shortcomings well. Raza is a clean striker of the ball himself and can disrupt India’s plans in the middle overs. Alongside Raza, Brian Bennett and Ryan Burl will be tasked with the responsibility of taking Zimbabwe towards a big total. With the ball in hand, Richard Ngarava, as usual, will be the man in charge. If he can get the ball to nip in the early stages of the game, he will be able to see the backs of Sharma and Kishan, who are susceptible to high-quality swing bowling.
Predicted Teams
ZIM: Brian Bennett,
Tadiwanashe Marumani (wk),
Dion Myers,
Sikandar Raza (c),
Ryan Burl,
Milton Shumba,
Clive Madande,
Brad Evans,
Tinotenda Maposa,
Richard Ngarava,
Blessing Muzarabani.
IND: Abhishek Sharma,
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi,
Ishan Kishan (wk)
Shreyas Iyer (c),
Tilak Varma,
Shivam Dube,
Rinku Singh,
Ravi Bishnoi,
Harsh Dubey,
Prince Yadav,
Mayank Yadav.
Key Players
Richard Ngarava (ZIM): Richard Ngarava is currently the best Zimbabwean bowler. The left-arm seamer is a widely sought-after commodity in franchise leagues across the world, as well. Ngarava can get the ball to swing both ways, but especially back into the right-handers. The pace he has and the bounce he can generate from a length make him hard to negotiate, too.
Rinku Singh (IND): Middle-order batter Rinku Singh is among the most underrated cricketers India has produced. The southpaw is a specialist finisher and can be tasked with chasing down big totals. Singh is renowned for striking the ball cleanly out of the park and can also handle pressure comfortably. His presence will assure the Indians at the death.
Match Prediction
Zimbabwe are the favourites to win. This is largely due to the form India have shown. After being thrashed and whitewashed by Ireland and England in the two T20I series, India also lost 1-2 to England in a three-match ODI series recently. This was despite the presence of stalwarts such as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in their ranks. In Zimbabwe, they do not have any of these experienced players, and will rely solely on untested talent. The home team know these conditions well, and will attack India now since the latter are hurting.
