Young opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was a member of the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup 2024 title in the West Indies and USA last month, scored an attacking fifty to help India chase down the target of 153 runs against Zimbabwe in 15.2 overs and beat them by 10 wickets in the fourth T20I played at Harare Sports Club on Saturday (July 13).
The win in the fourth T20I of the ongoing five-match series helped India go 3-1 up and seal the series.
The 22-year-old left-handed batter Jaiswal made the most of the opportunity to bat at top and scored 93 runs from 53 balls. He completed his half-century in 29 balls with the help of nine fours.
Shubman Gill, on the other hand, remained unbeaten on 58 runs from 39 balls. It was his second straight fifty for India against Zimbabwe. In the third T20I played on Wednesday (July 10), he scored 66 runs.
Earlier, India’s part-time bowlers Shivam Dube and Abhishek Sharma performed commendably in the middle overs to restrict Zimbabwe to a manageable 152 for seven in 20 overs.
Skipper Sikander Raza smashed 46 off 28 balls, but India’s fifth bowler Abhishek (1/20 in 3 overs) and sixth option Dube (1/11 in 2 overs) produced a decent effort to keep the proceedings under control.
They removed the dangerous-looking opening duo of Wesley Madhevere (25 off 24 balls) and Tadiwanashe Marumani (32 off 31 balls) to put brakes in the middle overs.
However, Raza with three sixes and two fours was the reason that Zimbabwe reached the 150-plus target with almost all the Indian bowlers, save leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, entering their names in the wickets column. Medium fast bowler Tushar Deshpande (1/30 in 3 overs) was handed a debut cap, but in his first spell, he flattered to deceive, either pitching it too full or bowling too short.
More often than not, he drifted on the pads, allowing both openers, Madhevere and Marumani, to pick up easy boundaries.
Deshpande would feel good that he could get rid of Raza with a slower delivery in the slog overs to prevent Zimbabwe from surpassing 170, which would have been par on this track.
Zimbabwe’s best opening stand for the series in the first three games was 9, but Madhevere and Marumani added 63 in a solid stand, even if it was not exactly spectacular.
However, once the opening stand was broken by left-arm spinner Abhishek Sharma, who forced Marumani to mistime a pull-shot into Rinku Singh’s hands, Zimbabwe couldn’t press home the advantage they had gained.
Madhevere was accounted for by Dube as he couldn’t get the required elevation and distance to a short ball. Rinku at deep mid-wicket completed formality.
Brian Bennett (9 off 14 balls), who was brilliant with the bat in the second game, failed to get going before Washington sent him back. This was after Dube and Abhishek bowled wicket-to-wicket and kept a check on scoring.
(With inputs from PTI)
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