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Preview: After ensuring a resounding clean-sweep over Zimbabwe in the three-match One-Day International (ODI) series, a confident young Indian side will aim to consolidate their dominance over the hosts in the first match of the two Twenty20 Internationals to be played at the Harare Sports Club on Friday. India clinched the ODI series 3-0. The visitors were a superior side in the 50-over campaign winning the first ODI by four runs, the second by 62 runs and the third by 83 runs. [caption id=“attachment_2348408” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Murali Vijay in action for India. Reuters[/caption] The visitors will have very little homework to do after putting up an impressive show both with the bat and bowl in the ODI series. But the hosts, swept aside in the ODI series, will look to making a strong comeback and proving themselves in the T20 series. Several Indian batsmen, namely Ambati Rayudu, skipper Ajinkya Rahane, Kedar Yadav and Murali Vijay, were among runs in the ODIs. Allrounder Stuart Binny and bowlers Bhuvneshwar Kumar, spinners Axar Patel and Harbhajan Singh were successful at taking wickets. While Rayudu, who scored a match-winning hundred in the first ODI, got injured and returned home, his replacement Manish Pandey chipped in, hitting a useful 71 on his debut to help India win the third ODI. India will aim to capitalise on their batting strength to put on an authoritative show, hoping their batsmen become more aggressive in the shortest format of the game. ALl eyes will be on skipper Ajinkya Rahane and Murali Vijay and their ability to provide strong starts on foreign pitches. Senior batter Robin Uthappa will also like to start scoring after missing out in the ODIs. Zimbabwe will hope their star hitter Chamu Chibhabha comes good and single handedly lead them to victories. India: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Robin Uthappa, Murali Vijay, Stuart Binny, Manoj Tiwary, Harbhajan Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Dhawal Kulkarni, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Axar Patel, Sandeep Sharma, Sanju Samson and Mohit Sharma. Zimbabwe: Elton Chigumbura (captain), Regis Chakabva, Chamu Chibhabha, Graeme Cremer, Neville Madziva, Hamilton Masakadza, Richmond Mutumbami (wk), Tinashe Panyangara, Sikandar Raza, Donald Tiripano, Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller and Sean Williams. IANS
As it happened: Axar stars as India beat Zimbabwe by 54 runs
As it happened: Axar stars as India beat Zimbabwe by 54 runs
Pulasta Dhar
• July 17, 2015, 20:33:06 IST
Live scores and updates from the first T20 between India and Zimbabwe.
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 "As it happened: Axar stars as India beat Zimbabwe by 54 runs")
July 17, 2015, 20:13:50 (IST)
Thank you for joining us for live coverage of the 1st T20I between India and Zimbabwe. That’s it from us for today — the next T20 is on Sunday 19 July at 4.30 PM.
July 17, 2015, 20:12:50 (IST)
Man of the match Axar Patel: I bowled to my strength and cut off the pace to batsmen. I like this ball (Dukes) because the seam is on top and good for spinners.
July 17, 2015, 20:10:27 (IST)
Ajinkya Rahane: We batted very well and we thought between 160-170 runs will be good. The wicket became slower in the end but it was still important to bowl in the right areas which our bowlers did. Wicket was slightly easier than the ODIs — but we took our singles and doubles very well.
July 17, 2015, 20:09:03 (IST)
Elton Chigumbura: We were outclassed all around — very disappointing how be batted after six overs. We gave them 10-15 runs more and also the wicket got dryer in the second innings which made it hard to play some strokes. But India bowled well and changed their pace very well. It’s important to play our best cricket on Sunday and get a positive result.
July 17, 2015, 19:59:59 (IST)
End of the innings – India win by 54 runs: Sandeep has had a terrible debut by the way — Madziva smacks him for a four and a six in the last over, that means Sandeep finishes by giving away 34 runs in three overs and took no wickets. But many positives all round — India started well, had some good partnerships and put on a defendable total before the spinners throttled Zimbabwe’s chase. Zimbabwe end at 124-7 in 20 overs.
July 17, 2015, 19:54:23 (IST)
19th over: Bhuvneshwar’s stellar figures are destroyed by a six and a four from Utseya — from nine in three overs, the Indian pacer has gone to 22 in four overs. Still won’t be enough for a home team win though — they need 67 runs from the last over.
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July 17, 2015, 19:47:04 (IST)
OUT! Cremer b Sharma 9 (14b, 0x4, 0x6): Mohit Sharma’s hitting the stumps well no? After the previous direct hit, he’s now found the stumps with a classy slower delivery — Cremer misses his slog and doesn’t even turn back to see the result. The sound is enough. It’s 98-7 in 17.4 overs.
July 17, 2015, 19:44:26 (IST)
17th over: Bhuvneshwar has kept things simple. No wickets in his three overs but he’s only given away nine runs. That’s superb. Now in comes Mohit and it’s only a matter of time before India are celebrating a win. It’s 96-6 and Zimbabwe need 83 from 18 balls.
July 17, 2015, 19:37:59 (IST)
Bowled him! Sikandar Raza b Patel 10 (17b, 0x4, 0x6): Axar gets a wicket on his last delivery — Rahane’s bowled him out and to good effect. Raza is stuck in his crease as another delivery which simply gets straighter misses the bat but not the stumps. 90-6 in 16 overs.
July 17, 2015, 19:32:22 (IST)
14th over: That piece of fielding has probably overshadowed everything that has happened in this match so far. Cremer is off the mark on his first ball and Zimbabwe are 84-5.
July 17, 2015, 19:27:49 (IST)
OUT! Incredible direct hit from Mohit! Ervine run out 2 (8b, 0x4, 0x6): What is that!! Mohit Sharma runs in from long-on, picks up the ball on the run and then sends a loopy throw while in momentum — and finds the stumps. Stunning. 82-5 in 13.4 overs now.
July 17, 2015, 19:23:57 (IST)
12th over: Binny comes, bowls basic line and length and gives away five runs — that’s a good over in T20 terms and will force Zimbabwe into taking risks against the spinners. Two new batsmane — Ervine and Raza — in the middle as Zimbabwe need 106 runs in 48 balls.
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July 17, 2015, 19:17:08 (IST)
11 overs gone and Zimbabwe are 68-4.
July 17, 2015, 19:14:47 (IST)
OUT! Coventry c Rahane b Harbhajan Singh 10 (10b, 0x4, 1×6): Harbhajan annoys Coventry with tight line and length — the big-hitter tries a reverse sweep and misses — very next ball, he clips it off his pads and straight to short mid-on.
July 17, 2015, 19:11:28 (IST)
Bowled him! Chigumbura b Patel 1 (3b, 0x4, 0x6)****! Wow what an over for Axar Patel — after sending back Masakadza, he’s now castled skipper Chigumbura, who is left clueless as a good length ball zaps off the surface and knocks his middle stump out. 66-3 in 10 overs.
July 17, 2015, 19:08:38 (IST)
OUT! Masakadza c Jadhav b Patel 28 (24b, 1×4, 2×6)****: Masakadza goes for that scoop over his left shoulder again, but this time there’s a short third-man and Axar Patel gets the danger-man. Wonder how Masakadza didn’t see the trap… it’s 64-2 in 9.2 overs.
July 17, 2015, 19:08:20 (IST)
9th over: Coventry gets his eye in quickly and slog sweeps Harbhajan for a six — a wicket and eight runs from that over — 63-1 now.
July 17, 2015, 19:03:37 (IST)
OUT! Chibhabha c Pandey b Harbhajan Singh 23 (27b, 2×4, 1×6): Chibhabha goes down the ground looking for maximum and two Indian fielders are coverging for the high catch — it’s eventually taken by Manish Pandey. Chibhabha was looking for long-on, but miscued it slightly. It’s 55-1 in 8.1 overs.
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July 17, 2015, 19:03:18 (IST)
8th over: Just five off the over as Axar delivers six near-identical deliveries — slung into the batsman’s feet before turning away from the right-handers. Robin Uthappa likes it: says ‘yeh wala yeh wala’. 55-0 now.
July 17, 2015, 19:00:17 (IST)
7th over: Masakadza welcomes Harbhajan with a humongous six over the on-side. He creates room in a flash and pulls it away in style. He adds a smart two to end the over. Zimbabwe bring up their 50 in seven overs.
July 17, 2015, 18:56:13 (IST)
6th over: Axar keeps it tight for five deliveries before providing meagre room for Chibhabha — the batsman had decided to go for a gap and shifts before pulling through the on side. Zimbabwe 38-0.
July 17, 2015, 18:51:53 (IST)
5th over: Bhuvneshwar’s been taken out of the attack and in comes Mohit — Chibhabha hits the third delivery through covers in style and on the up to find the ropes — a boundary an over with a smatter of singles will work very well for Zimbabwe. It’s 31-0.
July 17, 2015, 18:47:01 (IST)
4th over: Masakadza goes for the scoop over his shoulders again and gets four for it — he’s really doing this well today. Rahane misses a direct hit which would have certainly sent back the dangerous batsman. As of now, Sandeep Sharma isn’t enjoying his debut — he has given away 22 runs in two overs. It’s 27-0.
July 17, 2015, 18:43:22 (IST)
3rd over: Bhuvneshwar manages to keep it tight again — he’s getting movement off the seam and the batsmen are wary of hanging their bats out — just two runs again off this over too. 20-0 now.
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July 17, 2015, 18:41:34 (IST)
2nd over: And Zimbabwe break free! Chibaha and Masakadza both attack debutant Sandeep and smash him for a six each. 16 runs off the over and Zimbabwe are 18-0. Masakadza’s six was particularly special as he scooped it over his head for maximum. Risky, but calculated.
July 17, 2015, 18:40:15 (IST)
1st over: Nothing remarkable, just the two runs given away by Bhuvneshwar.
July 17, 2015, 18:15:29 (IST)
End of 20 overs – India 178-5: Harbhajan tries the same shot, a heave over the leg-side, thrice — and gets it right the last time as it gets India four runs. It’s not an insanely difficult target — but Zimbabwe will need a good start and wickets in hand for the last five overs for any chance of chasing this down.
July 17, 2015, 18:11:37 (IST)
Harbhajan time…
July 17, 2015, 18:10:32 (IST)
OUT! Binny c Cremer b Mpofu 11 (6b, 0x4, 1×6): Binny wants more sixes – he chooses the leg side this time but finds a fielder. 166-5 now. Five balls to go.
July 17, 2015, 18:09:46 (IST)
19th over: Six straight down the ground from Binny. Six more runs between the wickets and that over gets India a dozen runs — much needed. It’s 166-4 with six balls remaining.
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July 17, 2015, 18:05:42 (IST)
18th over: Binny comes in and is off the mark straight away with a prod towards third-man. He gets two more in the last delivery – this time towards long-on. 154-4 now.
July 17, 2015, 18:03:13 (IST)
OUT! Jadhav c Masakadza b Mpofu 9 (7b, 1×4, 0x6): Kedar Jadhav tries to hit it over point, but somehow his bat moves in slow-motion and he just scoops it to the fielder there. All that praise in the previous update… it’s 150-4 in 17.3 overs.
July 17, 2015, 18:00:10 (IST)
17th over: Swat! Kedar Jadhav hits it hard and through the gap in covers for his first four of the match — we all saw the damage he can do (in the final ODI) so this is an indication that he’s got the freedom to start hitting immediately. Oh, and add another wide — it’s 148-3.
July 17, 2015, 17:54:08 (IST)
16th over: This time the change of pace fools the keeper too. Zimbabwe take their total extras given to 21 runs as Mpofu’s slower delivery beats the batsman and the keeper and runs away for four more byes. 135-3 now.
July 17, 2015, 17:51:31 (IST)
OUT! Pandey c Sikandar Raza b Mpofu 19 (19b, 1×4, 1×6)****: Pandey plays a cracking shot for four in the first ball but doesn’t get enough bat on his attempted six in the next ball. He’s taken at long-off. It’s 127-3 in 15.2 overs.
July 17, 2015, 17:49:27 (IST)
Pandey and Uthappa have put together 41 runs in 35 deliveries.
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July 17, 2015, 17:48:15 (IST)
14th over: Ooooh another leading edge, but this time it’s not a wicket. Uthappa foxed by the change in pace frmo Muzarabani and the ball goes just over the bowler. Uthappa charges down a couple balls later and (again!) the ball was way down the leg side — it gets helped past short fine-leg for four. 123-2 now.
July 17, 2015, 17:45:18 (IST)
13th over: No fours or sixes as Cremer makes the batsmen think with some fine leg spin. Uthappa and Pandey are being careful — they would want to see the next seven overs through — and take five safe singles. 113-2.
July 17, 2015, 17:40:42 (IST)
12th over: Excellent batting from Pandey – doesn’t get too excited after that six and works Utseya’s over very well. It’s up to Uthappa to get the quick runs and he doesn’t disappoint with a neat shot using the pace of the ball for four down the leg. India 108-2 and looking tidy.
July 17, 2015, 17:36:41 (IST)
End of Liveblog
Written by Pulasta Dhar
If there is one place Pulasta Dhar wanted to live, it would be next to the microphone. He writes about, plays and breathes football. With stints at BBC, Hallam FM, iSport, Radio Mirchi, The Post and having seen the World Cup in South Africa, the Manchester United fan and coffee addict is a Mass Media graduate and has completed his MA in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Sheffield." see more
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