Harare (Zimbabwe): Back to their collective best, a clutch of young Indian stars will be eager to usher in a new era in the shortest format with a series victory when they face Zimbabwe in the fourth T20I here on Saturday.
After an unexpected defeat in the first match, the Shubman Gill-led side rediscovered its mojo in the second and third games to take a 2-1 lead with comprehensive wins. Under the existing cricketing landscape, a series win over Zimbabwe will not rank high in the pecking order, but it will certainly spark ambitions inside some young players who are keen to take the team forward post the retirement of some modern-day greats.
None provide more compelling cases of that scenario than Washington Sundar and Abhishek Sharma. Post the retirement of Ravindra Jadeja from T20Is, Washington is eyeing the spin-all-rounder slot and the Tamil Nadu man has shown some promising signs against Zimbabwe, taking six wickets at a fine economy of 4.5.
Whenever the selectors sit together to pick the Indian squad for the upcoming white-ball tour to Sri Lanka, they now will have to consider Washington's name seriously. The 24-year-old has given this Indian side the option of a bowler flexible enough to operate inside and outside the Power Play, and a handy lower-order batter, who if the need arises, has the technique to come up the order as well.
Abhishek bludgeoned a 47-ball hundred in the second T20I here, underscoring the hope around him as a long-term India material. India will no longer have the services of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the ultra-abridged version, and Yashasvi Jaiswal is the frontrunner to occupy one of those top-order slots.
Abhishek will hope to further buttress his claim for the other vacant top-order spot, for which there are other strong contenders in Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad, with a bruising knock against the African side here on the morrow. But this is not to say that some of the more established names such as Sanju Samson and Shivam Dube have nothing to gain from this series.
They linked with the squad here after taking part in India's victory parade in Mumbai post the T20 World Cup triumph, where they had limited or little role in that epochal run. So, the remaining two matches of this series will be an opportunity for Dube and Samson to keep themselves in the front row of players who will carry India into the future, producing some valuable efforts.
Indian management will also be pleased by the outing of their bowlers, particularly that of leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, whose googlies were indecipherable for the home batters. Bishnoi has six wickets, numbers similar to Washington and pacer Avesh Khan, who proved a nippy customer in this series.
Mukesh Kumar might come in place for left-arm pacer Avesh Khan after getting a rest in the previous match, but the pacer, though he has taken four wickets, will certainly like to be more economical.
On other hand, Zimbabwe have slipped a few rungs below after beating India in the first match. There have been lonely sparks in their line-up like searing spells by impressive pacer Blessing Muzarabani and a well-paced fifty by Dion Myers. But they need to harness them to meaningfully challenge this Indian unit, which is currently operating at one level higher.
Teams:
India: Shubman Gill (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shivam Dube, Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande.
Zimbabwe: Sikandar Raza (c), Akram Faraz, Bennett Brian, Campbell Johnathan, Chatara Tendai, Jongwe Luke, Kaia Innocent, Madande Clive, Madhevere Wessly, Marumani Tadiwanashe, Masakadza Wellington, Mavuta Brandon, Muzarabani Blessing, Myers Dion, Naqvi Antum, Ngarava Richard, Shumba Milton.
Match starts at 4.30 PM IST.
