Teenage opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi starred with a blistering 81 before the bowlers sealed India’s third successive win in the format….reports Asian Lite News Desk
India completed a comprehensive 3-0 sweep of the T20I series against Zimbabwe with a 35-run victory in the third and final match at the Harare Sports Club on Sunday.
Defending 193, India restricted Zimbabwe to 157/7 in 20 overs to hand captain Shreyas Iyer his first T20I series win since taking charge of the side last month.
Zimbabwe’s chase got off to the worst possible start as opener Brian Bennett was dismissed off the very first ball of the innings.
Pacer Yash Thakur then struck twice in the fourth over, removing Dion Myers for 19 and captain Sikandar Raza without scoring to leave the hosts reeling.
Ryan Burl and Ben Curran attempted to rebuild the innings with a 31-run stand for the fourth wicket before Ravi Bishnoi dismissed Curran for 20.
Burl later added 60 runs with Wessly Madhevere, who made 28 off 25 balls, but Mayank Yadav broke the partnership in the 16th over before also dismissing Brad Evans in the final over.
Burl remained unbeaten on 54 from 43 balls, hitting five boundaries, but lacked support from the other end as Zimbabwe fell well short of the target.
Mayank Yadav finished with three wickets, while Yash Thakur claimed two. Ravi Bishnoi and Ashok Sharma picked up one wicket each.
The victory marked India’s third consecutive win in the shortest format after enduring six straight defeats during tours of Ireland and England.
Earlier, India posted 192/5 after being asked to bat, thanks largely to a sparkling innings from 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
The youngster smashed 81 off 49 deliveries, striking eight fours and four sixes to lay the foundation for a competitive total.
India made an aggressive start as Sooryavanshi and Abhishek Sharma took 17 runs off the opening over bowled by Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza.
Zimbabwe responded in the next over when Blessing Muzarabani dismissed Abhishek for two, but Sooryavanshi continued his attacking approach alongside Ishan Kishan.
The pair guided India to 64/1 by the end of the powerplay before Sooryavanshi reached his second T20I half-century in just 31 balls.
Kishan contributed 29 from 26 balls before Raza dismissed him in the 11th over.
Sooryavanshi continued to dominate the bowling attack before falling for 81 in the 15th over, narrowly missing out on a century.
Captain Shreyas Iyer chipped in with 27 off 18 balls, while Rinku Singh provided a late flourish with 25 from just 14 deliveries. Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 11 as India finished on 192/5.
For Zimbabwe, Brad Evans was the most successful bowler with 2/41, while Raza, Muzarabani and Wessly Madhevere claimed one wicket each.
