Zimbabwe

Torrential rain, thunder and lightning halted play after 21 overs of the Pakistan innings, with the tourists toiling at 60-6 after bowling Zimbabwe out for 205.

Sean Williams, Blessing Muzarabani and Sikandar Raza each scalped two wickets apiece as no Pakistan batter surpassed the 19 runs managed by Mohammad Rizwan.

The dismal weather would ensure no further play was possible, with Pakistan having completed the requisite 20 overs to ensure a result would be declared, ensuring Zimbabwe won on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.

Richard Ngarava had earlier top-scored for Zimbabwe with a steady 48 off 52 balls, with Raza adding an important 39 from 56 deliveries after the hosts had been dropped to 99-5.

Salman Agha and Faisal Akram finished with three wickets apiece for Pakistan, but it was not enough to prevent Zimbabwe from being declared comfortable victors, with their total some way clear of the DLS par score of 141. 

Data Debrief: Zimbabwe end Bulawayo hoodoo

Zimbabwe's victory may not have come in the circumstances they would have envisaged, but it did end their dismal run against Pakistan at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.

They had lost each of their previous eight matches against Pakistan at the venue, only winning one of their last nine there overall (one draw, seven defeats), after winning three of their previous four.

They will hope to carry this momentum into Tuesday's second match at the same venue, as they bid to clinch victory in the three-match series.

A 16th successive loss in games between the nations appeared on the cards when Zimbabwe laboured to 118-9 on a slow, used pitch.

Opener Tinashe Kamunhukamwe made 34 from 40 deliveries while Regis Chakabva added some much-needed impetus during his quick-fire 18, including hitting one of only two sixes in the innings.

However, Pakistan found the going tough in reply, even with captain Babar Azam making 41 at the top of the order.

The right-handed batsman hit five boundaries in a 45-ball knock that came to an end when he became the second of four wickets for Luke Jongwe, hitting a slower ball to Wesley Madhevere in the deep.

Pakistan were 78-3 at one stage but their final seven wickets went down for just 21 runs as they were bowled out for 99 in 19.5 overs.

Mohammad Rizwan (13) and Danish Aziz (22) were players to join Babar on double figures, with tail-end trio Usman Qadir, Haris Rauf and debutant Arshad Iqbal all dismissed in the final over without adding a run to the total.

Success at last for Zimbabwe

This was a long overdue victory for Zimbabwe, and not just because of their sorry run of results against Pakistan. They had not won a T20 contest at the ground in Harare since beating India there back in June 2016, losing seven on the spin since.

However, their impressive triumph on Friday sets up a winner-takes-all showdown in Sunday's finale, a game which precedes a two-Test series.

Dialling up impressive numbers

Jongwe's final figures of 4-18 are the best recorded by a Zimbabwe bowler in a T20 international fixture.

He celebrated each success by taking off one shoe and pretending to make a telephone call. It is fair to say Pakistan did not have his number, as a shocking collapse condemned them to just a third defeat in 10 outings in the format.

Sikandar Raza’s unbeaten century carried his team to a six-wicket victory over the Netherlands as Zimbabwe successfully chased down the target of 316 set by the Dutch. 

That follows an opening victory over Nepal in Group A, leaving Zimbabwe in a good position in the race for a spot in the Super Six. 

Nepal bounced back from that opening loss to record their first win of the campaign, as they beat the USA by six wickets. 

Bhim Sharki was the star of the show, making 77 not out, as Nepal chased down 211 against the US, who have now lost twice in as many matches. 

Zimbabwe batters step up in chase again 

Two days after chasing down 291 against Nepal, Zimbabwe found themselves with an even bigger target to achieve against the Netherlands. 

But an unbeaten 102 from Sikandar Raza saw them home in comfortable fashion, reaching 319 for four with 55 balls remaining.

Raza reached his century off just 54 balls, the fastest ever by a Zimbabwean in ODI cricket.

Raza was spectacular with the bat, smashing eight sixes in his 54-ball knock as he carried on the good work of skipper Craig Ervine (50) and Sean Williams (91). 

The Dutch had looked in good position at the halfway stage, making 315 for six as Vikramjit Singh (88) and Scott Edwards (83) gave them a dream start to their tournament. 

Singh and Max O’Dowd (59) put on 120 for the first wicket before Raza bowled O’Dowd, before getting Wesley Barresi out in the same way. 

A 96-run partnership between Singh and Edwards continued the Netherlands’ fine batting effort with Raza again the man to find the breakthrough, removing Singh, on the way to figures of four for 55. 

Richard Ngarava (2/40) chipped in with a couple of useful wickets, including the skipper, but Saqib Zulfiqur’s 34 not out off 31 balls ensured the Dutch went into the interval feeling good. 

Zimbabwe needed to start quickly and they did just that, Ervine and Joylord Gumbie (40) putting on 80 for the first wicket before the captain was removed by Singh. 

Gumbie and Williams then added another 62, and while Shariz Ahmed claimed the wicket of the former, as well as Wessly Madhevere, Zimbabwe were comfortably keeping up with the asking rate. 

Raza joined Williams and the pair added 84 in ten overs to ease any tension, and while Williams eventually departed, it was left to his partner to complete a magnificent all-round performance to see the side home. 

Nepal up and running with US success 

Having suffered the same fate as the Dutch against Zimbabwe, Nepal needed a win against the USA, and got it by six wickets. 

Karan KC (4/33) did the damage with the ball to restrict the Americans to 207, before Bhim Sharki carried Nepal home with seven overs to spare. 

Karan was sensational early on after Nepal had chosen to bowl first, taking four wickets in the first ten overs to reduce the USA to 18 for four. 

Sushant Modani (42) and Gajanand Singh (26) started to rebuild, adding 47 before the latter edged Dipendra Singh Airee to slip. 

That brought keeper Shayan Jahangir to the crease and he counter-attacked in style, making 100 not out from just 79 balls as wickets continued to fall at the other end. 

Gulsan Jha (3/52) finished the job with an over to spare, rattling through the tail to leave Nepal with 208 to win, despite Jahangir’s maiden ODI century. 

Despite Aasif Sheikh falling leg before to Saurabh Netravalkar for 12, that total never looked like being enough, Kushal Burtel (39) and Sharki adding 49 for the second wicket. 

Skipper Rohit Paudel and Kushal Malla both made starts before falling, leaving Nepal on 137 for four as Airee joined Sharki. 

Any danger of a collapse was quickly averted though as the pair added 74 to carry Nepal to a comfortable win. 

Ireland look to get back on track against Scotland 

Attention will turn back to Group B on Wednesday when Ireland take on Scotland in Bulawayo in one of two games. 

Having fallen to defeat to Oman in their opener, Ireland will be keen to make amends at the Queens Sports Club against the Scots, who will be playing their first game of the tournament. 

The other game sees Oman looking to build on that Ireland success when they face the United Arab Emirates. 

The UAE were comfortably beaten by Sri Lanka in their first game and will now face an Oman team full of confidence in the encounter at the Bulawayo Athletic Club. 

Scores in brief 

Zimbabwe beat Netherlands at Harare Sports Club, Harare by six wickets 

Netherlands 315/6 in 50 overs (Vikramjit Singh 88, Scott Edwards 83; Sikandar Raza 4/55, Richard Ngarava 2/40) 
Zimbabwe 319/4 in 40.5 overs (Sikandar Raza 102*, Sean Williams 91; Shariz Ahmed 2/62) 

Nepal beat USA at Takashinga Cricket Club, Harare by six wickets 

USA 207 all out in 49 overs (Shayan Jahangir 100*, Sushant Modani 42; Karan KC 4/33, Gulsan Jha 3/52) 
Nepal 211/4 in 43 overs (Bhim Sharki 77, Dipendra Singh Airee 39*; Steven Taylor 1/14, Saurabh Netravalkar 1/29) 

Wednesday 21 June – Fixtures 

Group B 

Ireland v Scotland at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo 
Oman v United Arab Emirates at Bulawayo Athletic Club, Bulawayo 

The hosts, playing their first home Test since 2017, finished day one on 189-2 thanks to half centuries from Prince Masvaure, Kevin Kasuza and Craig Ervine.

Ervine was eventually dismissed for 85 on Monday when Suranga Lakmal (3-53) got one to nip back in and clatter the stumps. 

Embuldeniya led the way for Sri Lanka with 5-114 as they continued to make inroads, but Sikandar Raza (41) and Donald Tiripano (41 not out) helped Zimbabwe to 358 all out.

Captain Dimuth Karunaratne (12 not out) and Oshada Fernando made a promising start in reply for the tourists, but Tiripano's fine day continued when he cleaned up the latter for 21.

Tiripano extracted the same movement Lakmal exploited by flattening Fernando's off stump, Kusal Mendis (6 not out) saw Sri Lanka through to 42-1 - trailing by 316 runs - along with his skipper when bad light brought play to a close.

Day three is set to start at 09:54 local time following that earlier finish.

Last week, Pakistan wrapped up an impressive 3-1 T20I series victory over South Africa and they now take on neighbouring Zimbabwe in a three-match rubber in the shortest international format, starting in Harare on Friday.

Those games will precede a two-match Test series and the omens are not good for Zimbabwe.

Sean Williams' side have not qualified for this year's T20 World Cup and are not taking part in the World Test Championship, with Pakistan having won all 14 previous T20 meetings between the countries.

Nevertheless, Misbah insists he will not accept any of his players treating this latest assignment as a formality.

"Every series is an opportunity to learn. The team is not that experienced, except for three or four guys," he said. "We'd like to give chances to some of the younger guys and see how it goes. But at the same time, Zimbabwe are a gutsy side.

"They've got nothing to lose. They play without pressure. Hopefully, we play our best cricket and play to our standards."

Williams does not necessarily concur, arguing that being faced with elite performers such as Pakistan's captain and star batsman Babar Azam brings a pressure all of its own.

"Pressure is something you can't touch and you can't see. It's just a feeling," said captain and left-handed batsman Williams, who is 73 shy of becoming the second Zimbabwean to 1,000 T20I runs.

"Once we can get the players to control that, we will be on the right track. It is going to be a test but we are going to back our youngsters and give them a good run."

Misbah and Babar are likely to give strong consideration to including leg-spinner Usman Qadir given Zimbabwe's struggles against Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, who took 11 wickets in a recent Test clash between the countries.

Craig Ervine and Brendan Taylor are back to bolster the hosts' batting line-up after missing that trip to the UAE while Wellington Masakadza and Tapiwa Mufudza are vying to be Williams' go-to spin option.

Babar primed to pile on the runs

Having replaced Virat Kohli atop the ODI world rankings, Babar displayed sensational T20 form against South Africa when he hit a magnificent 122 in a successful chase of 204, when Pakistan cantered home by nine wickets at Centurion. Operating at the top of the order, he should claim the 60 runs he needs to reach 2,000 in T20Is sooner rather than later.

14 and counting

Zimbabwe have a considerable tale of woe to try to overturn in this one-sided rivalry. When the sides met in November last year, Pakistan chased successfully in all three matches – showcasing prowess that was once again on display at South Africa. That run of defeats surely has to end eventually.