Can Raza's brilliance lead Zimbabwe to victory over Sri Lanka?

Harare, Sep 6 (NationPress) Sri Lanka faced a devastating defeat in Harare, recording their second-lowest T20I total as Zimbabwe achieved a decisive victory in the second match of the T20I series. They were bowled out for a mere 80 runs in just 17.4 overs, unable to recover from a dismal start orchestrated by Blessing Muzarabani and Brad Evans, while Sikandar Raza dominated with a performance that sealed the fate of the visiting team.

Sent in to bat, Sri Lanka's troubles began immediately during the Power-play. Muzarabani, having regained his form after a tough previous game, took two wickets by dismissing Kusal Mendis and Nuwanidu Fernando, while maintaining tight control over scoring.

Evans added to the woes from the opposite end, taking out Pathum Nissanka with a clever short delivery and then demolishing Kamil Mishara's stumps with a powerful yorker. After six overs, Sri Lanka found themselves in dire straits at 37 for 4, a precarious position from which few teams recover in T20 cricket.

While the pacers initiated the collapse, Raza ensured there was no chance of recovery. The Sri Lankan middle order struggled against his clever variations. He dismissed Kamindu Mendis for a duck and also took out seasoned players Charith Asalanka and Dushmantha Chameera in the same over.

Astoundingly, he did not concede any boundaries in his four overs, concluding with impressive figures of 3 for 11 and later earning the Player of the Match accolade. Evans completed the innings with his third wicket, leaving Sri Lanka all out for just 80 runs.

Although defending such a small total was a challenging task, Chameera briefly ignited hope for the visitors with a fiery bowling performance. He dismantled Zimbabwe's top order, sending Tadiwanashe Marumani and Sean Williams back to the pavilion, before also getting Raza out with another quick delivery.

A fourth wicket nearly came his way, but Asalanka dropped a sharp chance off Tashinga Musekiwa. That slip proved detrimental, as Musekiwa remained unbeaten on a brisk 21 off 14 balls, leading Zimbabwe to victory with over five overs remaining.

The 2-0 scoreline illustrates Zimbabwe's dominance, but the nature of Sri Lanka's defeat—feeble batting, lack of partnerships, and total capitulation against both pace and spin—will be the most painful takeaway.

Brief score:

Sri Lanka 80 all out in 17.4 overs (Kamil Mishara 20, Charith Asalanka 18; Sikandar Raza 3/11, Brad Evans 2/15) lost to Zimbabwe 84/5 in 15.2 overs (Tashinga Musekiwa 21, Ryan Burl 20; Dushmantha Chameera 3/19, Binura Fernando 1/14) by five wickets