Shreyas Iyer-led India are squaring off against Sikandar Raza’s Zimbabwe in the 2nd T20I of the three-match series on Saturday (July 25). The fixture is taking place at the Harare Sports Club in Harare. Zimbabwe won the toss and opted to bowl first in the must-win fixture. Both captains walked out for the toss wearing black armbands. The players were also wearing the black armbands when play started. During the game, the BCCI revealed that the players are wearing them to pay respect to Zimbabwe cricket’s vice-chairman, Sylvester Matshaka.
“TeamIndia and Zimbabwe players are wearing black armbands to pay their respects to the Zimbabwe Cricket Vice-chairman Sylvester Matshaka, who passed away last night,” the BCCI wrote on X.
India made one change in their playing XI and handed a debut cap to Yash Thakur. He replaced Ashok Sharma, who made his debut in the series opener.
“We were going to bat first. I feel it looks a bit different. It’s not as tacky as it was in the first game. I feel the bounce will be consistent, and that’s what I’m hoping. But let’s see how it plays. We just passed on the message to all the boys that it’s important to stay in the present and not be complacent because when you have such a comprehensive win, you tend to take things easily,” Iyer said at the toss.
“I think it’s essential for us to enjoy the moment as well as make sure that we play to the best of our abilities. There is a lot of potential in the dressing room and if they turn up today with a solid approach, then definitely the results will take care of themselves. [Team news] We have one change – Yash Thakur comes in for Ashok Sharma,” he added.
Here are playing XIs of both teams
India: Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Mayank Yadav
Zimbabwe: Sikandar Raza (Captain), Brian Bennett, Ben Curran, Dion Myers, Ryan Burl, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brad Evans, Newman Nyamhuri, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani