Brief Scores: India (126/3 in 13.2 ovs) beat Zimbabwe (125/7) by seven wickets in the first T20I in Harare. Sooryavanshi (50)
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi lit up Harare with a record-breaking half-century while Mayank Yadav made a dream return to international cricket as India outclassed Zimbabwe by eight wickets in the opening T20I on Thursday to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
ZIM vs IND 1st T20I: SCORECARD | HIGHLIGHTS
The victory ended India’s seven-match winless run in T20Is, gave Shreyas Iyer his first win as captain and put the visitors 1-0 up in the three-match series.
Mayank laid the foundation on his return to international cricket after a stress fracture. Playing his first match since October 2024, the fast bowler struck with the opening ball and finished with two wickets as Zimbabwe were restricted to 125 for seven.
Chasing 126, India lost Abhishek Sharma early, but Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made sure there were no alarms. The 15-year-old blazed his way to 50 off just 19 balls, bringing up the landmark in only 18 deliveries, as India completed the chase in 13.2 overs.
India were in control for most of the contest. Their pace attack exposed Zimbabwe’s top order, reducing the hosts to 32 for four before the middle order added some late runs. Sooryavanshi then took the game away from the hosts, with Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer seeing India home with more than six overs to spare.
SOORYAVANSHI ANNOUNCES HIMSELF
Sooryavanshi’s much-awaited international debut in England earlier this month did not go to plan, but he made an immediate impact on his return to the Harare Sports Club, where he had scored a memorable 175 in the Under-19 World Cup final earlier this year. India lost Abhishek Sharma early, with Blessing Muzarabani forcing the opener to slice one to third man after he had managed just one from eight balls.
That was as good as it got for Zimbabwe. Sooryavanshi quickly seized control of the chase, taking on the fast bowlers with complete freedom. He announced himself with two stunning sixes off Richard Ngarava in the second over. The first was a one-legged pull over deep square leg before he made room to loft a good-length delivery over mid-off.
Muzarabani, who had initially kept him quiet, was also dispatched over long-on for a towering six as India raced to 66 in the Powerplay.
Sooryavanshi reached his maiden T20I fifty in just 18 balls, becoming the youngest player in men’s international cricket history to score an international half-century. His innings of 50 from 19 deliveries included four fours and four sixes before Ngarava ended his stay.
Ishan Kishan maintained the tempo with 35 off 24 balls, while Shreyas Iyer remained unbeaten on 28 to complete the chase with more than six overs to spare.
MAYANK YADAV SETS THE TONE
Earlier, Mayank Yadav wasted no time reminding everyone what India had missed during his long injury lay-off. The fast bowler struck with the opening delivery of the match as Brian Bennett edged behind. The on-field umpire was unmoved, but India reviewed successfully to claim the wicket.
Mayank consistently clocked over 145 kmph and extracted awkward bounce from a hard length. His second wicket came when Dion Myers mistimed a pull shot against the extra pace.
Debutant Ashok Sharma settled in after an expensive first over, while Prince Yadav backed up Mayank with two wickets of his own.
Zimbabwe never recovered from the early blows. They slipped to 26 for three inside the Powerplay and then to 32 for four when captain Sikandar Raza picked out the fielder at deep square leg while trying to attack Shivam Dube.
Ryan Burl (26), Wessly Madhevere (38) and Tadiwanashe Marumani (27 not out) stitched together useful partnerships to take Zimbabwe past the 120-run mark, but they never managed to put India under any real pressure.
Ravi Bishnoi also enjoyed a tidy outing, returning figures of 1 for 24 from his four overs.
After the bowlers set up the victory, Sooryavanshi finished the job in style as India ended their seven-match winless run in T20Is, handed Shreyas Iyer his first win as captain and took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
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