Zimbabwe vs Pakistan 1st T20I – Match Prediction: Who will win the match Pakistan or Zimbabwe?

Zimbabwe are going into the series with a new skipper.

View : 3.3K

2 Min Read

Pakistan
info
Pakistan. (Photo Source: Twitter)

The Twenty20 Tri-Series in Zimbabwe gets underway tomorrow with the hosts playing the No.1 ranked Pakistan. Zimbabwe had real struggles assembling a squad for the series. Most of their experienced and better players have opted out of the series. Graeme Cremer, Brendan Taylor, Sean Williams and Craig Ervine have all opted out of the series due to the ongoing payment issues with the board. Sikandar Raza is also not a part of the team and he is playing the Global T20 Canada league instead.

Pakistan, on the other hand, will use this as an opportunity to test their squad. They have immense talent in the unit and this Zimbabwean team will hardly challenge them, Sarfraz Ahmed and Mickey Arthur might want to use this to test the young names in the side. They next face Australia but the way they fared against England doesn’t promise a lot. It won’t be a surprise if Pakistan treat this as a practice game.

Pitch Conditions

The pitch at the Harare Sports Club is a good batting wicket. The weather in Zimbabwe is cool at the moment and that might aid the quicks for a bit. Considering all the possible factors it still is a win the toss bat first kind of a pitch as it wouldn’t change a lot during the course of the match.

Team Combination

Zimbabwe

As a result of the payment and contractual troubles, ZC had to appoint a new captain for the series and it was announced on the eve of the game. They recalled Elton Chigumbura into the team and named him the captain. This will be his first international outing in two years.

Amidst the ongoing crisis, the only good news for Zimbabwe is that their bowling line-up is intact. They have had to bring in a lot of reinforcement in the batting department and look a really weak unit in this format of the game against a formidable Pakistan team.

As a matter of fact, Zimbabwe have played only two T20Is in the last couple of years against Afghanistan and lost on both occasions. 

Predicted XI: Brian Chari, Chamu Chibhabha, Tarisai Musakanda, Hamilton Masakadza (C), Elton Chigumbura, Peter Moor (wk), Malcolm Waller, Tendai Chisoro, Kyle Jarvis, Blessing Muzarabani, Chris Mpofu

Pakistan

Sarfraz would feel spoilt for choice, his batsmen have been delivering the goods and so have the bowlers. The team management will want the players who have been under the pump to come good this time. It is a great opportunity for them to regain confidence and cement their spot in the team.

In the batting department, they will rely on Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfraz himself and Shoaib Malik to get the bulk of the runs. In the bowling department, they have such a variety with the likes of Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir, Faheem Ashraf and Usman Khan all in good rhythm. Shadab Khan will be the lone spinner and he can change the course of the game with his leg-spin. 

Predicted XI: Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Hussain Talat, Sarfraz Ahmed (C, wk), Asif Ali, Shoaib Malik, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Amir, Usman Khan

Probable Top Performers:

Elton Chigumbura (Zimbabwe) | Shoaib Malik (Pakistan)

Head to Head

Played – 9 | Zimbabwe – 0, Pakistan – 9, Tie/NR – 0

Broadcast details: 

TV – PTV Sports (Pakistan)

Sony Six, Sony Six HD (India)

Live streaming– PTV Sports (Pakistan)

Sony LIV (India)

Match Timings: 1:00 PM PKT, 1:30 PM IST

The Prediction is for Pakistan to have a smooth walk in the park and take the game quite comfortably.

zim-vs-pak-1st-match-australia-and-pakistan-in-zimbabwe-t20i-tri-series-2018

For all the latest cricket news and other updates follow CricTracker.

Get every cricket updates! Follow Us:

googletelegraminstagramwhatsappyoutubethreadstwitter

Download Our App

For a better experience: Download the CricTracker app from the IOS and Google Play Store