New Delhi. The second match of the three-match T-20 International series being played between India and Zimbabwe will be played at the historic Harare Sports Club on Saturday. The Indian team is full of confidence after registering a resounding and one-sided victory in the first match of the series. This young Indian team, led by captain Shreyas Iyer, will take the field on Saturday with the intention of winning the second match and taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. On the other hand, for host Zimbabwe this match is like ‘do or die’. To remain in the series, the Zimbabwe team under the captaincy of Sikandar Raza will have to register its first win at any cost.
In the first match of the series, everything went according to plan for the Indian team. From the toss till the last moments of the match, India maintained its hold on the match. Sharp fast bowling: The Indian fast bowlers, with their speed and accuracy, did not give any opportunity to the Zimbabwean batsmen to play freely and restricted the entire team to just 125 runs. Mayank Yadav, famous for his fearsome speed, once again created fear among the opposition batsmen. Mayank bowled miserly, spent only 18 runs and achieved 2 important successes.
Prince Yadav and Ashok Sharma fully supported Mayank. Prince Yadav impressed with his line-length and took 2 wickets for 29 runs, while Ashok Sharma also left a deep impression with his tight bowling. In the spin department, leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi’s fast-spinning balls remained a incomprehensible puzzle for Zimbabwe’s middle order.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s storm and captaincy innings
The Indian team, which set out to chase the small target of 126 runs, adopted an aggressive stance from the very beginning. Young batsman Vaibhav Suryavanshi batted in a stormy style and completed his half-century in just 18 overs. His aggressive innings broke the morale of Zimbabwe’s bowlers in the beginning itself. After Bhav’s dismissal, wicketkeeper batsman Ishan Kishan played a useful inning of 35 runs in 24 balls. In the end, captain Shreyas Iyer showed maturity and scored unbeaten 28 runs with the help of 3 fours in 24 balls, taking the team easily across the threshold of victory.
The road to comeback is not easy for Zimbabwe
The host Zimbabwe team will expect a much better performance from its batsmen in the second T20I. Batting remains the biggest concern: In the first T20, except Wesley Madhevere (39 runs in 34 balls) and Ryan Burl (26 runs), no batsman could face the Indian bowlers. The top order including captain Sikandar Raza will have to take responsibility in the second match. In bowling, star fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani bowled an excellent spell, taking 2 wickets for just 26 runs in 4 overs. However, the lack of form of other main bowlers like Richard Ngarwa and Wellington Masakadza remains a matter of concern for the team.
Harare pitch and weather conditions
There is speed and bounce on the Harare Sports Club pitch. In the first match also, the fast bowlers got a lot of help in the initial overs. However, once they set their eyes on the crease, it becomes easier for the batsmen to score runs. A total of 84 T20 International matches have been played here where the team batting first has won 45 matches while the team chasing the target has won 37 times.
Talking about the weather, according to the report of weather website Accuweather, the sky will be completely clear in Harare on Saturday. It will be sunny and there is no chance of rain, due to which fans will get to watch an exciting game of full 40 overs.
Probable players and squads of both the teams
Indian team:
Shreyas Iyer (captain), Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Shivam Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Varun Chakraborty, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Prabhsimran Singh (wicketkeeper).
Zimbabwe team:
Sikandar Raza (captain), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Tanaka Chiwanga, Ben Curran, Brad Evans, Wesley Madhewere, Tadivanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarwa, Newman Nyamauri, Innocent Kaiya, Tafadzwa Tsiga.
