24 July 2026,
Friday
24 July 2026,
Friday
Indian cricket team (Photo: IANS)
India Tour of Zimbabwe 2026: Shreyas Iyer finally has his first win as India's T20I captain. In the opening T20 international played in Harare on Thursday, the Men in Blue beat Zimbabwe by seven wickets. Batting first, Zimbabwe were restricted to just 125 for 7 in their 20 overs. In reply, India chased the target down in only 13.2 overs, finishing on 126 for 3.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi played a blistering half-century in the run chase, while Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer also chipped in with crucial runs. However, the real hero of the match was pacer Mayank Yadav, who made a stunning comeback after nearly two years out of the side and walked away with the Player of the Match award for his fierce bowling display.
Winning the toss, captain Shreyas Iyer opted to bowl first. Mayank Yadav made an immediate impact, dismissing Brian Bennett with the very first ball of the match. Wickets then tumbled in a hurry as Zimbabwe slipped to 32 for 4, before being reduced to 64 for 5. Innings from Wessly Madhevere and Tafadzwa Tsiga, however, helped steady the innings and take the hosts past the 120-run mark.
Prince Yadav also impressed with figures of 2 for 19 from his four overs. The lethal new-ball bowling from the two Yadavs made life difficult for Zimbabwe's batters, who could not even cross the 130-run mark. Shivam Dube and Ravi Bishnoi picked up one wicket apiece to round off the bowling effort.
Chasing 126, India got off to a poor start, with Abhishek Sharma dismissed for just 1 run. But Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Ishan Kishan then took charge with some fearless hitting, guiding India close to the target. Suryavanshi smashed 50 off just 19 balls, including four fours and four sixes, while Kishan made 35 off 24 balls with three fours and two sixes. Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma finished the job in style, sealing a comfortable seven-wicket win for India.
