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Mukesh Kumar provided an early breakthrough for India against Zimbabwe in the first of the five-match T20I series at Harare Sports Club on Saturday, July 6. The speedster struck off the first ball by dismissing hosts’ opener Innocent Kaia for a golden duck.
The dismissal came off the first ball of the second over of Zimbabwe’s innings. Mukesh bowled a length ball that nipped in and Kaia went for a drive but only managed an inside edge back onto the stumps, which went for a walk.
Watch the video below:
Mukesh Kumar is playing his first T20I since January 2024. The 30-year-old has bagged 12 wickets in 14 T20Is at an economy rate of 9.39. The Delhi Capitals’ pacer recently bagged 17 wickets in 10 matches in IPL 2024.
Mukesh Kumar strikes early as India opt to bowl against Zimbabwe in T20I series opener
Mukesh Kumar struck early as India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bowl first against Zimbabwe on Saturday. The Men in Blue included three debutants Jitesh Sharma, Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag in the playing XI.
At the toss, Gill said:
“We will field first. I think it looks like a good surface. It won't change much later. It has been long coming. We won an ICC event after 11 years. You always have some expectations from yourself. We have three debutants. Sharma, Jurel, and Parag make their debuts.”
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe are playing with several young players under Sikandar Raza’s captaincy.
At the time of writing, Zimbabwe were 40-2 afer 5.1 overs, with Sikandar Raza and Wessly Madhevere at the crease. Brian Bennett was the last batter to be dismissed, clean bowled by Ravi Bishnoi.
Team India are coming on the back of 12 consecutive wins in T20Is. A win in the series opener against Zimbabwe will help India become the first full-member team to script a record for most back-to-back wins in T20Is. They are currently equal with Afghanistan for 12 succesive wins in T20Is.
Follow the IND vs ZIM 1st T20I live score and updates here.
