Sikandar Raza scored an unbeaten 65 off 26 while Wessley Madhevere made 67* off 47 as an in-form Zimbabwe side defeated Bangladesh by 17 runs in the first T20I that took place at Harare Sports Club on Saturday.
Raza was the chief architect for the hosts, smashing 65* off 26 and then picking up a wicket. Zimbabwe won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first on a good surface. The tourists didn’t get off to a flyer, losing Regis Chakabva for 8 and captain Craig Ervine for 21 off 18.
It was the partnership between Madhevere and Sean Williams that set Zimbabwe for a good total. The pair added 56 runs in 6.1 overs before Williams was cleaned up by Mustafizur Rahman for 19-ball 33. Madhevere and Raza then put on an exhibition, adding 91 runs in just seven overs.
Madhevere was retired hurt on a brilliant 67 off 46, which included nine fours. Raza hit seven fours and four sixes in his outrageous knock that helped Zimbabwe score 91 runs in the last six overs and propelled them to 205/3.
Bangladesh lost Munim Shahriar in the second over, but Liton Das kept the scoreboard flowing with 32 off 19. The visitors were 63/2 in seven overs when Das became a victim of a horrible mix-up in the middle. Najmul Hossain Shanto made 37 off 25 batting at no. 4 while stand-in captain Nurul Hasan smashed 42* off 26 but the target proved to be too much for them.
Luke Jongwe was the pick of the bowlers for the hosts with his 2 for 34 in four overs, while Wellington Masakadza claimed 1 for 23 in his three. Raza was unsurprisingly named the ‘player of the match’ for his performance. The two will clash in the second T20I at the same venue on Sunday, July 31.
Brief scores
Zimbabwe 205/3 in 20 overs (Madhevere 67*, Raza 65*; Rahman 2/50) defeated Bangladesh 188/6 in 20 overs (Hasan 42, Shanto 37; Jongwe 2/34) by 17 runs.
