India and Zimbabwe will lock horns in a three-match series starting Thursday, July 23. Here’s India’s predicted XI for the first T20I in Harare.
India squad for Zimbabwe T20Is
Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Tilak Varma, Shreyas Iyer(c), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Suryansh Shedge, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prabhsimran Singh, Harsh Dubey, Ravi Bishnoi
All eyes on Sooryavanshi, again
The 15-year-old will once again be in the spotlight and could well be under pressure to deliver as well after three sub-20 scores in T20Is against England. With Sanju Samson not in the squad, the opening pair will be Abhishek Sharma alongside Vaibhav.
Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma will complete the top five, which was largely the same, in the previous series. Iyer was the leading run-scorer for India against England but would be under immense pressure, having not led the team to a victory in seven matches so far.
Tilak made 13, 24*, 3 and 11 in the first four games against England, striking at 118.60, before making 53 in 25 in the last, and will be eager to continue his form.
All-rounders to be picked ahead of specialists again?
The team management is again expected to shore up the playing XI with all-rounders. Shivam Dube will likely feature, being capable of sending down a few overs, although rarely, there could be a toss-up between Rinku Singh and Suryansh Shedge. The latter is likely to get the nod, with Dube not expected to bowl his full quota of overs, leaving India without a reliable fifth bowler.
Harsh Dubey has a T20 fifty to his name, and that could be enough for him to play ahead of Ravi Bishnoi. He will bat at number eight and will also bowl four overs of his left-arm spin. Prince Yadav, who is four T20Is old, is the leader of the pace attack, with speedster Mayank Yadav likely to play his first T20I since October 2024.
Yash Thakur and Ashok Sharma could be fighting for the last spot ahead of Bishnoi as the pitch is expected to have decent bounce and carry. With Harare experiencing peak winters, fast bowlers are likely to have more say in the game. Thakur, who offers more control with the ball, could make his debut.
India’s predicted XI for first T20I vs Zimbabwe
Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (WK), Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Harsh Dubey, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Yash Thakur
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
