India vs Zimbabwe Live ஸ்கோர், 1st T20I of India tour of Zimbabwe, 2026

One down, two to go - That brings us to the end of this one-sided affair, with India taking a 1-0 lead in the series. They will now look to wrap things up in the next one, while Zimbabwe will be determined to bounce back and force a decider. The second T20I is set to be played right here at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday, July 25, and gets underway at 11 am GMT (4.30 pm IST). As always, make sure you join us early for all the build-up ahead of the game. Until then, cheers and goodbye!

The victorious skipper of India - Shreyas Iyer says they were exceptional in their execution and admits he cannot be happier to register his first win as captain. He feels the team anticipated the bounce well, with the pitch offering a decent amount of carry. He praises Mayank Yadav for providing an exceptional start with the ball and not giving Zimbabwe any room to score freely. Iyer also applauds Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for giving India an excellent start with the bat. He says the batters analysed the conditions well and built partnerships. He describes Vaibhav as fearless, praising the immense confidence he shows every time he steps onto the field.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - Mayank Yadav wins the award for his excellent bowling spell of 2/18 in 4 overs. He says it feels great to contribute to the team's success and describes returning to the national side as a special moment. Playing in Zimbabwe for the first time, he says he thoroughly enjoyed bowling on a surface that offered plenty of assistance. Mayank mentions that hitting the deck hard and getting that extra bounce worked nicely for him. He also credits the rest of the bowling attack for maintaining the squeeze throughout the innings, saying their collective discipline made life difficult for Zimbabwe's batters.

The captain of Zimbabwe - Sikandar Raza says that the batting was not up to the standard. Adds that the moisture certainly played a part at the start, but he didn't expect it to have an effect for that long. Mentions that in the last 8 overs of their batting and when India came out to bat, the wicket was good to bat on. Says that they could not get the early boundaries with the new ball, which put them under pressure. Raza shares that there were a couple of batters thrown into a new role, like Tadiwanashe Marumani going down the order, but he did well, and there were still a lot of positives to take from this game.

Presentation Time...

Tough day out - Zimbabwe needed early breakthroughs, and although Blessing Muzarabani struck quickly, they could never build any real pressure as they had no answers to the power-hitting of the 15-year-old. To be fair to the bowlers, they were defending a far too small total to begin with. Richard Ngarava did pick up a wicket, while Muzarabani added another to his tally, but by then the damage was already done, and it was simply too little, too late for Zimbabwe.

Chat with one of the Indian quicks - Prince Yadav says he is pleased with his performance, but adds that the team's victory is what matters most. He feels the new ball offered enough assistance for the pacers, with it carrying well and moving around off the seam. He believes consistently bowling in the right areas brought the rewards. Prince also reveals that the message within the bowling group was to stick to their lines and lengths, stressing that even if a good ball went for runs, they weren't going to stray from their plans.

India's bowlers keep Zimbabwe in check - Earlier in the game, Zimbabwe never really got going, posting a well-below-par total on the board. The top order struggled to make an impact, but Ryan Burl played a valuable cameo in the middle. However, it was the 58-run partnership between Wessly Madhevere and Tadiwanashe Marumani that helped Zimbabwe add some respectability to their total. It was a dominant bowling performance from India, with Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav picking up a couple of wickets each, while Shivam Dube and Ravi Bishnoi chipped in with one apiece. Overall, it was an engaging and compact bowling effort from the visitors.

Sooryavanshi unleashes the fury - Despite losing Abhishek Sharma early, the game was all but over inside the Powerplay, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi taking on the Zimbabwe pacers at will. He went on a sensational hitting spree, showcasing the fearless strokeplay we have seen from him in the IPL, and after a few difficult outings on the international stage, he finally showed his true potential. India raced to 66 runs in the Powerplay, with Vaibhav smashing his maiden T20I fifty off just 18 balls before departing. Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer then guided the Men in Blue to the brink of victory. Kishan fell before the finish line, but the skipper stayed unbeaten to see India home with more than six overs to spare.

Iyer ends losing streak - A professional performance from India as they take an early lead in this three-match series. Shreyas Iyer will be a relieved man as well, picking up his first win as India’s T20I captain after enduring a seven-match winless streak. The victory should provide him with a much-needed confidence boost heading into the remainder of the series. Zimbabwe, meanwhile, were never really in the contest and will have to go back to the drawing board to figure out how they can challenge the reigning World Champions in the games to come.

That's it. India complete a comfortable win by 7 wickets to go 1-0 up in the three-match series. Fuller and down leg, Varma gets inside the line and clips it past square leg for a single to seal the win for his side.

Wide! Drifts well down leg, on a good length. Varma lets it through. The scores are level.

From around the wicket, on a back of a length, outside off. Not wide enough for the cut and Iyer chops it behind point for a run.

Stays short, on off. Shreyas waits on it before punching it through point for a single. 3 more needed for India.

This keeps straight, on a nagging length, on off. Iyer steers it to short third.

Fractionally short, on off, Varma plays it with the turn past cover for a single.

Slower through the air and the length is pulled back, on off. Shreyas drags the pull in front of square and gets to the other end.

Full and quick, at the stumps. Iyer pushes it back to Rana.

Drops it short, turning back in, on middle. Iyer rocks back and pulls it over mid-wicket. He does not get hold of it and it is hauled in. India are now one big hit away, needing 6 more runs.

Bangs it in short, on off. Tilak stands tall to keep it out.

FOUR! That's sloppy from Richard Ngarava. Blessing Muzarabani finds the funny side of it. Short and wide on off. Tilak steers it down to deep third, where Ngarava gets on a knee to make the stop, but he lets it through his legs, and it trickles into the fence.

Hits the deck hard, on off. Varma rises with the bounce and stabs it down on the off side.

The next man in is Tilak Varma.

OUT! CAUGHT! Ishan Kishan falls with the finish line in sight for India. Wobble seam ball, across off. Kishan tries to cover the line and keep it out. This kicks up off a length, and Ishan is taken aback. He cannot adjust to the ball rearing up on him and chips it to cover. Dion Myers gobbles it up with ease. India lose their 3rd wicket, needing 12 more runs.

On a good length, flirting with the tramline. Kishan makes the leave.

Sliding onto the pads, on the fuller side. Shreyas wrists it wide of mid-wicket for a single.

Wide! Sprays it down leg. Iyer misses out on the tickle.

SIX! You just cannot bowl there! Sticks to the short length but goes down the leg side, there to be hit. Ishan Kishan gets inside the line of it and just helps it on its way over the deep fine leg fence for a flat six. India need 14 more runs.

WIDE! Newman Nyamhuri goes short again but outside off, over the tramline, Ishan Kishan throws his bat at it but misses.

Bangs this into the pitch, on middle, Ishan Kishan swivels and pulls it away wide of deep square leg for a couple of more runs.