India face Zimbabwe in the 3rd and final T20I at the Harare Sports Club, aiming for a clean sweep after already wrapping up the three-match series 2-0.
For captain Shreyas Iyer, this victory marks a significant relief. After taking over the T20 leadership, Iyer endured a frustrating start to his tenure, suffering series defeats away in Ireland (0-2) and England (0-4). Leading this side to a series win in Harare brings him his maiden series victory as India’s T20I captain and puts an end to a brief winless patch for the team.
India’s dominance in the series has been absolute across both matches. In the 1st T20I, a sharp bowling display led by Mayank Yadav restricted Zimbabwe to 125, allowing India to cruise to a 7-wicket victory in just 13.2 overs.
The 2nd T20I saw an even more emphatic performance; India piled up 219/5 behind Ishan Kishan’s destructive 81 and Tilak Varma’s unbeaten 60, before bowling out the hosts for 129 to secure a 90-run win. Young opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and debutant pacer Yash Thakur have also made strong contributions across both games.
Heading into the final match, Zimbabwe skipper Sikandar Raza faces a tough task. The host nation’s top order has struggled to cope with India’s aggressive bowling, while their own attack has surrendered heavy runs early in the innings.
With the series already secured, India might rotate their bench to test depth, offering opportunities to players who haven’t featured yet. However, the visitors remain heavy favorites to finish the tour with a 3-0 whitewash, while Zimbabwe will be desperately playing for pride to avoid a complete series sweep on home turf.
India Vs Zimbabwe, 2nd T20I: When, where and how to watch?
The 2nd T20I, which is set to start from 4:30PM (IST) today, will be live streamed exclusively on the Zee5 app/website as well as the Unite8 Sports channels on television screens.
India Vs Zimbabwe, 2nd T20I: Squads
India Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Suryansh Shedge, Harsh Dubey, Prabhsimran Singh and Yash Thakur.
Zimbabwe Squad: Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani(w), Ben Curran, Dion Myers, Sikandar Raza(c), Ryan Burl, Wessly Madhevere, Brad Evans, Newman Nyamhuri, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani, Tafadzwa Tsiga, Innocent Kaia, Tanaka Chivanga and Wellington Masakadza.
