Zimbabwe unraveled with sloppy bowling and fielding at the end, losing a match they once had under control.
After a strong start, Zimbabwe’s batting collapsed, leaving them short of 150. Their bowlers fought hard, but late errors cost them the game. Powered by effective knocks from Fakhar Zaman and Usman Khan, along with Mohammad Nawaz’s all-round brilliance, Pakistan opened their tri-nation T20 series campaign with a confident victory.
Pakistan won the opening match by 5 wickets.
Despite a flying start and a 72-run opening stand off 48 balls, Zimbabwe could only post 147 for 8 in Rawalpindi on Tuesday. They lost 7 wickets for just 37 runs in the middle phase.
Opener Brian Bennett top-scored with 49 off 36 balls, while captain Sikandar Raza contributed a valuable cameo of 30-plus at No. 5.
Pakistan’s innings was the complete opposite. They crawled to 56 for 4 in the first 10 overs, but accelerated later to chase down the target with four balls to spare.
The match turned with a 61-run partnership off 39 balls between Fakhar and Usman for the fifth wicket. Usman and Nawaz then added an unbeaten 36 off 21 balls for the sixth wicket, steering the hosts home.
Pakistan needed 17 runs in the final two overs. In the 19th, Bennett dropped Nawaz, and bowler Brad Evans followed with a no-ball. A misfield off the next delivery gifted Pakistan a boundary.
With 5 needed in the last over, Nawaz sealed the match with boundaries off the first two balls. After taking 2 wickets for 22 runs in his 4 overs, he returned to score an unbeaten 21 off 12 balls, earning the Player of the Match award.
Returning to the T20I side, Fakhar scored 44 off 32 balls with two fours and two sixes. Usman remained unbeaten on 37 off 28, hitting three fours to guide Pakistan home.
Zimbabwe began brightly after being sent in to bat. Bennett smashed two fours off Shaheen Shah Afridi in the very first over. Tadiwanashe Marumani lifted Saim Ayub for the match’s first six. Zimbabwe reached 59 without loss in the powerplay.
Nawaz broke the stand in the eighth over, removing Marumani. Brendan Taylor, batting at No. 3, was run out for 14 off 14. Bennett fell just short of his fifty, offering a return catch to Saim. From a strong 91 for 1 in the 11th over, Zimbabwe plummeted to 128 for 8.
Raza was the one who dragged them near 150, remaining unbeaten on 34 off 24 with three fours and a six.
Pakistan’s chase started painfully slow. Evans removed Sahibzada Farhan and Babar Azam in the fifth over—Babar departing for a duck. Captain Salman Ali Agha lasted only two balls.
Pakistan managed just 31 for 3 in the powerplay.
Saim scored 26 with a four and a six before falling in the 10th over, dismissed by 39-year-old leg-spinner Graeme Cremer, returning to international cricket after seven and a half years.
Under pressure, Fakhar and Usman revived the innings with a fifty-plus stand. After Fakhar’s dismissal, Pakistan still needed 33 off 24 balls. Usman offered a chance when he lofted one to cover, but Raza failed to hold on despite a diving attempt. That miss proved costly—Zimbabwe couldn’t capitalize, and Pakistan cruised home.
Zimbabwe will face Sri Lanka in the second match of the tournament on Thursday.
Score Summary
- Zimbabwe: 147/8 in 20 overs
(Bennett 49, Marumani 30, Taylor 14, Burl 8, Raza 34*, Munyonga 3, Musakanda 2, Evans 2, Maposa 1, Ngarava 1*; Afridi 1-34, Salman Mirza 1-21, Faheem 0-11, Saim 1-31, Abrar 1-28, Nawaz 2-22) - Pakistan: 151/5 in 19.2 overs
(Sahibzada 16, Saim 22, Babar 0, Salman Ali 1, Fakhar 44, Usman 37*, Nawaz 21*; Ngarava 1-31, Maposa 1-29, Evans 2-26, Raza 0-29, Bennett 0-4, Cremer 1-27)
Result: Pakistan won by 5 wickets
Player of the Match: Mohammad Nawaz
