2nd T20I: Confident India aim to seal series versus Zimbabwe
What's the story
After a disappointing series against Ireland and England, India bounced back with a resounding seven-wicket victory in the first T20I against Zimbabwe. The win was largely thanks to the blistering performance of young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Mayank Yadav also returned to form with two wickets, while Prince Yadav and Ashok Sharma impressed with their pace attack. The visitors now aim to seal the series in the second, which takes place on Saturday. Here is the preview.
Details
Pitch report and other details
The Harare Sports Club generally offers a balanced pitch, with pacers getting seam movement and bounce early on. While batting can get tricky in phases, spinners usually come into play.
Following the opening game, however, Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza expressed his concerns over the pitch, saying it was too moist in the beginning, making batting difficult with a new ball.
The impending game, starting 4:30pm IST, will be an afternoon affair in Zimbabwe. It will be broadcast live on Unite8 Sports and live-streamed on FanCode.
H2H
Here's the head-to-head record
According to Cricinfo, India and Zimbabwe have faced each other 15 times in T20 Internationals, with the former winning on 12 occasions.
Meanwhile, the Harare Sports Club has hosted 13 T20Is between these two sides.
There has been just a solitary instance of Zimbabwe winning back-to-back T20Is against India (2015-16).
Notably, Zimbabwe are eyeing history as they have never defeated India in a T20I series before.
Match details
India dominated hosts Zimbabwe in 1st T20I
In the first T20I, India completely dominated Zimbabwe.
The hosts crumbled under pressure, losing three wickets in the powerplay, and managing only 125 runs for seven wickets.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who scored an 18-ball half-century, helped India chase down the modest target with ease.
Ishan Kishan (35) and Shreyas Iyer (27 not out) also made a mark.
Series outlook
Will India seal the series with another win?
Having won the first match, India will be looking to seal the series with another victory in the second T20I.
The team has shown a much-improved performance after their previous series losses and will be hoping to continue this momentum against Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, the home team needs to regroup in order to challenge the formidable Indian unit.
Key names like Sikandar Raza and Richard Ngarava must step up.
Line-ups
A look at likely XIs
Zimbabwe (Probable XI): Brian Bennett, Ben Curran, Dion Myers, Sikandar Raza (c), Ryan Burl, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani (wk), Brad Evans, Newman Nyamhuri, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani.
India (Probable XI): Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav.
Performers
Here are the key performers
Sooryavanshi made history in the series opener by becoming the youngest player to score a half-century in men's T20 internationals.
Mayank Yadav put up a Player-of-the-Match performance, having finished with 2/18 in four overs.
Meanwhile, India will be wary of Blessing Muzarabani, who has taken 19 T20I wickets at 14.89 this year.
Sikandar Raza is the only player from a Full Member nation with the double of 3,000 runs and 100 wickets in T20Is.
Poll
