This was the first time Zimbabwe won a T20I against Pakistan
23 April, 2021
PHOTO: AFP
Zimbabwe pulled off a stunning 19-run victory against Pakistan in the second Twenty20 International (T20I) between the sides in Harare on Friday.
This was the first time Zimbabwe won a T20I against Pakistan and helped them level the ongoing three-match T20I series at one-all.
Chasing a sub-par target of 119 runs, Pakistan were off to a cautious start. In-form opener Mohammad Rizwan fell first off the bowling of pacer Luke Jongwe, caught by fielder Musakanda, after scoring 13 runs off 18 balls.
Batsman Fakhar Zaman (two off seven) and veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez (five off 10) could not get going and fell while attempting to boost the scoring rate. Both batsmen fell to spinner Ryan Burl, caught by fielders Musakanda and Masakadza respectively.
Luke Jongwe however might have picked up the most important wicket of the match as he removed skipper Babar Azam, caught by fielder Madhevere, after the batsman had scored 41 runs off 45 balls.
As the asking rate climbed up, Pakistan needed their power-hitters to deliver and they failed horribly. Batsman Asif Ali (one off three) was caught by substitute fielder Tiripano off the bowling of Ngarava while all-rounder Faheem Ashraf (two off five) was caught by fielder Burl off the bowling of pacer Blessing Muzarabani.
Danish Aziz struggled to hit the big shots and was ultimately run-out after scoring 22 runs off 24 balls.
Tailender Usman Qadir was run-out towards the end of the chase while tailender Haris Rauf holed out to fielder Taylor off the bowling of Jongwe.
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Arshad Iqbal was the final wicket to fall, caught by fielder Burl off the bowling of Jongwe, as Pakistan were all out for 99 runs in 19.5 overs.
Luke Jongwe starred with the ball for the Zimbabwe side, picking up four wickets at the expense of 18 runs in 3.5 overs.
Earlier, after winning the toss and choosing to field first, Pakistan applied a stranglehold on the Zimbabwe batsmen from the word go. The first 28 balls brought just 19 runs before skipper Brendan Taylor tried an ill-advised slog that ended in the hands of fielder Mohammad Hafeez off the bowling of all-rounder Faheem Ashraf.
Batsman Tadiwanashe Marumani struggled to 13 runs off 19 balls before falling to pacer Arshad Iqbal, caught behind by wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan.
Opener Tinashe Kamunhukamwe faced a lot of balls but could not settle in, ultimately falling to all-rounder Danish Aziz, caught by fielder Babar Azam, after scoring 34 runs off 40 balls.
Batsman Ryan Burl fell next off the bowling of leg-spinner Usman Qadir, caught by wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan, after scoring just three runs off four balls.
All-rounder Wesley Madhevere was then bowled by all-rounder Danish Aziz as Zimbabwe struggled at a scoreline of 83 runs for the loss of five wickets in 14.4 overs.
Batsmen Tarisai Musakanda (13 off 10) and Regis Chakabva (18 off 14) showed promise but could not push on to make a significant dent in the match, falling to pacers Mohammad Hasnain (bowled) and Haris Rauf (LBW) respectively.
Tailender Wellington Masakadza was run-out when a return shot touched the bowlers fingers and crashed into the stumps with the batsman short of his crease.
All-rounder Luke Jongwe was dismissed by fast-bowler Mohammad Hasnain, caught by fielder Fakhar Zaman, towards the end as Zimbabwe limped to a sub-par total of 118 runs in their allotted overs.
Mohammad Hasnain was the pick of the bowlers for Pakistan after taking two wickets at the expense of 19 runs in his four overs.
