RAWALPINDI: Zimbabwe produced a dominant all-round performance to beat Sri Lanka by 67 runs in the second match of the Pakistan-hosted T20I tri-series here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday.
Chasing 163 runs, Sri Lanka’s batting unit managed 95 runs before being bowled out in 20 overs, succumbing to a massive defeat in their campaign opener.
Captain Dasun Shanaka put up a lonely battle for the former champions with a gritty 34 off 25 deliveries, peppered with two sixes and as many fours. Besides him, only the returning Bhanuka Rajapaksa (11) could reach double figures.
Evans was the standout bowler for Zimbabwe, taking three wickets for just nine runs in his four overs, followed by Richard Ngarava with two, while Tinotenda Maposa, Graeme Cremer, Ryan Burl and Raza chipped in each.
Batting first, the Chevrons amassed 162/8 in their allotted 20 overs despite Wanindu Hasaranga’s economical bowling spell that shook their middle order.
Zimbabwe got off to a shaky start to their innings as they lost their opener, Tadiwanashe Marumani (10), on the first delivery of the fourth over with just 26 runs on the board.
The African side then suffered another setback in the batting powerplay when experienced Brendan Taylor (11) was cleared by Eshan Malinga on the third delivery of the sixth over, which saw them slip to 40/2.
After the early stutter, skipper Raza joined Bennett in the middle, and the duo anchored Zimbabwe’s innings by putting together a 61-run partnership for the third wicket.
Hasaranga finally broke the crucial partnership in the 13th over by dismissing the opening batsman, who remained the top scorer anchoring 49 off 42 deliveries, with five fours and a six.
Raza was then involved in a brief 23-run partnership with Ryan Burl, who was able to score an 11-ball 18 before falling victim to Hasaranga in the 16th over, which also saw Tony Munyonga dismissed for a golden duck.
The successive dismissals had reduced Zimbabwe to 124/5 in 15.5 overs, but Raza continued his counter-attack and kept them in a decent position by the end of 17 overs.
The all-rounder’s grit finally culminated on the first delivery of the 18th over when he fell victim to Dushamantha Chameera, thanks to a beautiful catch from his Sri Lankan counterpart, Dasun Shanaka.
Sikandar Raza remained a notable run-getter for Zimbabwe, scoring a 32-ball 47, comprising three fours and two sixes.
Tashinga Musekiwa then added valuable runs on the backend, scoring a seven-ball 11 before falling victim to Malinga in the penultimate over.
Hasaranga was the bowlers’ favorite for Sri Lanka, taking three wickets for 32 runs in his four overs, followed by Malinga with two, while Maheesh Theekshana and Chameera made one scalp each.
