What happened the last time India played Zimbabwe in a T20I?
The next generation of Team India cricketers will look to ride the wave of momentum from the 2024 T20 World Cup-winning side when they take on Zimbabwe in a five-match T20I affair. All five games will be played in Harare, starting July 6.
India and Zimbabwe haven't played each other much in T20Is, especially with the latter's inability to qualify for the recently concluded T20 World Cup. However, they did meet in the 2022 T20 World Cup, the last meeting between the sides in the shortest format.
Playing at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the Men in Blue won the toss and elected to bat first. Skipper Rohit Sharma fell for a 13-ball 15 in the fourth over, bringing in ace batter Virat Kohli to the crease.
However, he labored at just over a run-a-ball and was dismissed for a 25-ball 26 to leave India 87/2 in the 12th over. Finally, swashbuckling batter Suryakumar Yadav walked in at No.4 to completely turn the tide in India's favor.
He smashed a scintillating 61* off 25 deliveries, including six boundaries and four maximums, and took India from a tricky 101/4 in the 14th over to a massive 186/5 in 20 overs. India also received a valuable contribution from KL Rahul at the top with a 35-ball 51.
It was then the bowlers' turn to have fun as they stifled the Zimbabwean batters from start to finish. All six bowlers India used were amongst the wickets with Ravichandran Ashwin's 3/22 in four overs leading the way.
Mohammaed Shami and Hardik Pandya chipped in with two wickets each as India bundled Zimbabwe out for 115 in the 18th over to complete a 71-run win. Suryakumar Yadav was adjudged the Player of the Match for his breathtaking half-century.
Rohit Sharma's Men eventually finished atop Group 2 with four wins in five games, while Zimbabwe finished at the bottom with a lone victory in four completed outings.
It meant India qualified for the semi-final, where they suffered a 10-wicket loss to eventual champions England.
How have India and Zimbabwe fared against each other in overall T20Is
India and Zimbabwe have met only eight times in T20Is with the former holding a healthy 6-2 edge.
Apart from the most recent meeting in the 2022 T20 World Cup, the two sides faced each other in a three-match series in Zimbabwe in 2016. It was anything but straightforward for the Men in Blue as the hosts fought valiantly throughout the series.
The African nation stunned the Asian giants by two runs in the first T20I before Team India stormed back with a ten-wicket win in the second encounter. The decider was a seesaw affair with the Indians coming out on top by a mere three runs to pull off a 2-1 series win.
The teams also met a year before (2015) in a two-match series with India comfortably winning the opener by 54 runs. However, the resurgent home team pulled off the upset in the series finale by 10 runs to finish on level terms at one apiece.
Apart from these two bilateral series, India and Zimbabwe have met only once in another two-match affair in 2010. It was the first meeting in T20Is between the sides and India won both games by comfortable margins of six and seven wickets, respectively.
Chamu Chibhabha is the all-time leading scorer in India-Zimbabwe T20Is with 172 runs in seven games. India's Axar Patel is the leading wicket-taker in T20Is between the sides with seven scalps in six matches.
The upcoming five-match T20I series will take place between July 6 to July 14.