Media365
Zimbabwe pulled off a memorable win in Harare, beating Sri Lanka by five wickets in the second T20I to level the series. The hosts bowled brilliantly to skittle Sri Lanka out for just 80, their second-lowest total in the format, before holding their nerve in the chase to seal only their second-ever T20I victory over the Lankans. It was a tough outing for Sri Lanka, who simply didn’t have enough runs on the board. Their 80 all out was also the lowest total recorded at Harare, beating Zimbabwe’s own 90/9 against Afghanistan back in 2022. For Sri Lanka, this became their second-lowest score in T20Is, only behind the 77 they made against South Africa in New York earlier this year.Dushmantha Chameera gave the visitors some hope with a fiery opening spell, taking three quick wickets, but Zimbabwe’s batters kept calm. Ryan Burl and Tashinga Musekiwa stitched together an important stand that guided the side home. Earlier, Bennett and Burl did well to steady the innings when the chase got tricky at 61 for 5, before Musekiwa finished the game with a couple of confident boundaries.Sikandar Raza, who was named Player of the Match, praised his team’s effort. “We kept saying we are close to playing good cricket, it is nice to be on the other side of the result. There is a sigh of relief for everybody,” he said after the win. Raza also credited his teammates for stepping up and expressed hope that Zimbabwe could now push for the series victory in the decider.
