Raza’s All-Round Brilliance Seals Zimbabwe’s Big Win Over Sri Lanka

RAWALPINDI: Sikandar Raza continued his excellent performance, leading Zimbabwe to a dominant victory over Sri Lanka in the 2nd match of the Pakistani T20I Tri-series at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday.

Chasing 163, Sri Lanka struggled to build momentum and lost wickets till the last bowl of the match. Zimbabwe’s bowlers attacked from the very beginning and kept applying pressure, leaving Sri Lanka struggling to gain any momentum.

Sri Lanka crumbled early when Pathum Nissanka fell for 0, followed by Kusal Perera for 4 in the second over. Then, Kusal Mendis ran out for 6, leaving the side reeling at 25-3 in 6.1 overs.

Zimbabwe’s disciplined attack continued to squeeze Sri Lanka, with no batter except skipper Dasun Shanaka able to put up a fight. Shanaka played a lone hand, scoring a brisk 34 from 25 balls, hitting two sixes and two fours, but lacked support at the other end.

Wickets kept tumbling as Kamindu Mendis (9), Bhanuka Rajapaksa (11), Wanindu Hasaranga (8), Dushmantha Chameera (1), Maheesh Theekshana (8), and Eshan Malinga (1) all fell cheaply. Nuwan Thushara remained not out on 1 as Sri Lanka finished at 95 all out, handing Zimbabwe a dominant win.

Zimbabwe’s bowlers shared the impact impressively. Brad Evans was exceptional with 3 wickets for 9 runs, while Richard Ngarava picked up 2 wickets for 15. Tinotenda Maposa, Ryan Burl, Graeme Cremer, and Sikandar Raza all chipped in with one wicket each, making it a complete team performance.