HARARE – Zimbabwe national cricket team claimed a thrilling 17 run victory in the Tour of Bangladesh in their first of the three ICC T20 internationals at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday.
Wessley Madhevere scored for half a century before retiring hurt to anchor Zimbabwe’s innings after captain Craig Ervine won the throw.
But it was Sikandar Raza who propelled the hosts to 205 carries from 20 overs and scored a brisk 65 from just 26 balls.
Bangladesh went 188 for 6 in 20 overs with Nurul Hasan hitting 42 while the other batsmen made good double-digit contributions.
Raza, the man of the match, hit seven boundaries and four highs in his 101-run collaboration with Madhevere, who hit 67 runs from 46 balls.
By the time he arrived Zimbabwe had lost Sean Williams (33 from 19) 99 for 3 after 12.2 overs and by then the hosts had to up the pace and it proved that Raza was the right time.
It didn’t take long for him to settle in and in no time he was causing all sorts of trouble for the Bangladesh attack as the fans left their seats and danced to the tune of Raza.
Zimbabwe have now won six consecutive T20 matches after a perfect record in the International Cricket Council T20 World Cup qualifiers.
The two teams square off at lunch time Sunday at the same venue.
