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India begin a three match T20I series against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club with a completely rebuilt squad, handing maiden call-ups to three uncapped players while dropping T20 World Cup Player of the Tournament Sanju Samson entirely. Zimbabwe, fresh off Test and ODI series wins over Bangladesh, welcome back captain Sikandar Raza, who sat out the ODI leg against Bangladesh. In this preview you will find the match details, squad changes, pitch report and two ZIM vs IND fantasy team options, one safe and one for grand leagues.
For Indian viewers, the match starts at 4.30 PM IST, a 1.00 PM start in Harare.
ZIM vs IND 1st T20I Match Details
Match: Zimbabwe vs India, 1st T20I, India tour of Zimbabwe 2026
Date: Thursday, July 23, 2026
Time: 4.30 PM IST | 1.00 PM local, Zimbabwe
Venue: Harare Sports Club, Harare
Streaming: FanCode
TV: DD Sports
A Development Squad, Not India’s Strongest XI
This is a deliberately young and experimental India squad, built with an eye on depth ahead of future tournaments rather than fielding the strongest available XI. Sanju Samson, who was Player of the Tournament at this year’s T20 World Cup, has been left out entirely, with reports suggesting the selectors did not want to carry two specialist wicketkeepers on a short tour alongside Ishan Kishan.
Senior names like Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna have also been left out.
In their place, uncapped players Harsh Dubey, Ashok Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh all earn their first call-ups, while Mayank Yadav returns from injury and Rinku Singh comes back into the T20I fold.
Ravi Bishnoi has been added as a late replacement for the injured Varun Chakaravarthy. Shreyas Iyer continues as captain with Tilak Varma as his deputy.
Zimbabwe: Strong Across Formats, But Lost The T20Is
Zimbabwe’s results against Bangladesh were mixed across formats. They won the one-off Test and the ODI series 2-1, but lost the T20I series 1-2 after leading 1-0, with Bangladesh winning the last two matches in Bulawayo to take the decider by 4 wickets.
That loss came with Zimbabwe’s middle order struggling to get going in both defeats, and their attack leaning heavily on the new-ball pair of Richard Ngarava and Blessing Muzarabani for the bulk of the pressure.
Sikandar Raza did become Zimbabwe’s most-capped international during that series, reaching 314 appearances across formats, but the T20I result is a reminder that Zimbabwe’s white-ball form is stronger in ODIs than it has been in the shortest format lately, and it is specifically this format where they now face India.
ZIM vs IND Head To Head
India lead the head to head 8 wins to 2 across the last ten meetings between the two sides, including a win over Zimbabwe at this year’s T20 World Cup.
ZIM vs IND Squads
India: Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma (vc), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Prabhsimran Singh (wk)
Zimbabwe: A dedicated squad announcement for the India series specifically was not available at the time of writing. Zimbabwe’s core group through their recent white-ball success has featured Sikandar Raza (c), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Brad Evans, Clive Madande, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers and Richard Ngarava, and a similar group is expected to be named for this series.
Harare Sports Club Pitch Report
Harare Sports Club has hosted 84 matches, with a near-even split between bat and ball, 51 percent won batting first against 49 percent bowling first. The average first innings score of 158 suggests a fairly balanced surface for both batting and bowling.
Venue stats:
| Stat | Record |
|---|---|
| Matches | 84 |
| Won batting first | 51% |
| Won bowling first | 49% |
| Average 1st innings score | 158 |
| Average 2nd innings score | 137 |
| Highest total | 259/5 by Zimbabwe vs Botswana |
| Lowest total | 71 all out by Malawi vs Namibia |
| Highest chased | 194/5 by Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe |
| Lowest defended | 118/9 by Pakistan vs Zimbabwe |
Recent matches at Harare Sports Club:
| Match | Result |
|---|---|
| 1st T20I, Bangladesh tour of Zimbabwe 2026 | Zimbabwe won by 32 runs |
| 3rd T20I, Afghanistan tour of Zimbabwe 2025 | Afghanistan won |
| 2nd T20I, Afghanistan tour of Zimbabwe 2025 | Afghanistan won |
ZIM vs IND Probable Playing XIs
Zimbabwe (probable): Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Dion Myers, Sikandar Raza (c), Ryan Burl, Milton Shumba, Clive Madande (wk), Tashinga Musekiwa, Brad Evans, Richard Ngarava, Blessing Muzarabani
India (probable): Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, Yash Thakur
Key Player Battles
Mayank Yadav vs Zimbabwe’s top order: Yadav’s raw pace, returning to the side after injury, offers India a genuine point of difference with the new ball against a Zimbabwe top order that has looked in good touch.
Sikandar Raza vs Ravi Bishnoi: Raza’s all-round experience against Bishnoi’s leg-spin is a contest worth watching, especially with Bishnoi bowling in the middle overs against a Zimbabwe side comfortable playing spin.
Brian Bennett vs India’s new-ball bowlers: Bennett’s century-adjacent 97 not out against India at the T20 World Cup shows he has few fears against this attack, and how India’s new-ball options handle him again could set the tone for the match.
ZIM vs IND Fantasy Team (Small Leagues)
Wicketkeeper: Ishan Kishan
Batters: Shreyas Iyer (C), Sikandar Raza (VC), Brian Bennett
All Rounders: Ryan Burl, Shivam Dube
Bowlers: Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, Yash Thakur
Iyer is captain leading a young Indian side, and Raza takes the vice-captaincy as Zimbabwe’s most experienced and reliable performer. Muzarabani and Ngarava lead the bowling picks after their strong recent form for Zimbabwe.
ZIM vs IND Fantasy Team (Grand Leagues)
For grand leagues, this second ZIM vs IND fantasy team looks to India’s uncapped new faces as differentials.
Wicketkeeper: Prabhsimran Singh — differential
Batters: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi — differential, Sikandar Raza (C), Tadiwanashe Marumani
All Rounders: Ryan Burl, Harsh Dubey — differential
Bowlers: Blessing Muzarabani, Ashok Sharma — differential, Ravi Bishnoi, Brad Evans
Sooryavanshi and Ashok Sharma both offer real upside as uncapped players making their case in a rebuilding India side, without the ownership the more established names are likely to draw.
Also Read: ZIM vs BAN 2nd T20I Fantasy Team: Preview, Probable XIs, Pitch Report And Prediction
ZIM vs IND Match Prediction
Zimbabwe have had a strong 2026 at home overall, winning the Test and ODI series against Bangladesh, but they actually lost the T20I leg of that same series 1-2 after leading 1-0, which is the more relevant form line given this is also a T20I assignment. India’s development squad, while talented, is largely unfamiliar with each other in this combination and lacks the experience of the side that usually represents the country in T20Is. That makes this a genuinely open contest: Zimbabwe’s recent T20I form has been shaky at home, and India are fielding a first-time combination, so neither side goes in with a clear form advantage in this specific format.
Q. When is the ZIM vs IND 1st T20I?
A. Thursday, July 23, 2026, at Harare Sports Club, Harare, starting at 1.00 PM local time, which is 4.30 PM IST.
Q. Where can I watch ZIM vs IND live?
A. The match will stream on FanCode, with DD Sports also carrying the telecast.
Q. Why is Sanju Samson not playing?
A. He has been left out of the squad entirely, with reports indicating the selectors did not want to carry two specialist wicketkeepers on the tour alongside Ishan Kishan.
Q. Who is India’s captain for this series?
A. Shreyas Iyer captains India, with Tilak Varma as vice-captain.
Q. Who is Zimbabwe’s captain?
A. Sikandar Raza captains Zimbabwe, returning after missing the ODI series against Bangladesh.