India finish with a bang: Sanju Samson, Mukesh star as visitors beat Zimbabwe by 42 runs, win series 4-1
Harare, July 14
Sanju Samson’s well-crafted fifty and Mukesh Kumar’s disciplined spell helped India wind up their Zimbabwe tour with a comprehensive 42-run victory in the fifth and final T20I here today. With this win, India clinched the series 4-1.
Samson (58 off 45 balls) was central to India’s healthy 167/6 along with Shivam Dube’s flashy 26 (12 balls). Then the India bowlers led by Mukesh (4/22), Shivam Dube (2/25) and Washington Sundar (1/7) did their job, bundling out Zimbabwe for 125 in 18.3 overs.
After the early dismissal of Wessly Madhevere, who dragged the third ball of the first over by pacer Mukesh onto his stumps, and Brian Bennett, the pair of Tadiwanashe Marumani (27) and Dion Myers (34) added 44 runs for the third wicket to keep the hosts in the hunt.
Marumani’s switch-hit four off leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who went for a few runs in this match, was quite stunning in its execution. But such shots were few and far between from the Zimbabwe batters.
Marumani went for a sweep shot against Washington but missed the line altogether as the ball crashed onto his upper torso to get adjudged as leg-before.
Dube tailed a shuffling Myers with a quicker delivery onto his body, and the Zimbabwe batter merely chipped the ball to Abhishek Sharma at short third man.
The final nail was the run out of skipper Sikandar Raza (8), which came during a cartwheel of four wickets for nine runs. Mukesh, who bagged his career-best T20 figures, fittingly ended Zimbabwe innings going through the gate of Richard Ngarava.
Earlier, Samson and Riyan Parag (22 off 24 balls) added 65 runs for the fourth wicket as India recovered from a middling powerplay in which they scored 44/3.
Yashasvi Jaiswal (12), who made an unbeaten 93 in the fourth T20I, started the proceedings with two sixes off the first two balls – counted as one delivery after Raza started with a no ball — of the innings. But off the fourth ball of the same over, Jaiswal played the wrong line to a delivery on the middle and leg stump to get bowled.
Abhishek, who was dropped on 10 by Bennett off Blessing Muzarabani, did not last long, edging the pacer two balls later to Clive Madande behind the wicket.
Skipper Shubman Gill, who received a reprieve on 11, was never his fluent self and smashed left-arm seamer Ngarava straight into the hands of Raza in the deep.
At 44/3, India needed a partnership to steady the innings. Samson and Parag provided just that. Their alliance was all about prudence than theatrics, choosing the correct delivery to punish.
It was the right approach too considering the pitch was not precisely a belter as it was in the previous two matches, offering a hint of turn. However, Samson showed his aggressive side when the opportunity presented itself.
Samson brought up his fifty in 39 balls, his second in T20Is, but Parag departed as India were looking for some late acceleration. The right-hander perished to Mavuto while looking to clear the fence, and Samson too could not carry on till the end of the innings. He took on Muzarabani, the most home side bowler, but ended up giving a catch to Marumani.
However, the tourists found some late steam through Dube’s fireworks.
Brief scores: India: 167/6 in 20 overs (Sanju Samson 58, Shivam Dube 26, Riyan Parag 22; Blessing Muzarabani 2/19, Richard Ngarava 1/29); Zimbabwe: 125 all out in 18.3 overs (Dion Myers 34, Faraz Khan 27, Tadiwanashe Marumani 27; Mukesh Kumar 4/22, Shivam Dube 2/25).
