WATCH: Mukesh Kumar dismantles Innocent Kaia's stumps for a golden duck to give India a perfect start in T20I series opener vs Zimbabwe

The Indian cricket team kicked off their first series since their T20 World Cup victory on Saturday, July 6. The five-match T20I series against Zimbabwe is being held at the Harare Sports Club in Harare. This series marks a new chapter for the Indian team, featuring a young squad led by captain Shubman Gill. Notably, none of the players from the victorious T20 World Cup team are participating in the first two games. Shivam Dube, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Sanju Samson, initially named in the squad, had to miss the opening matches due to a delayed arrival from Barbados. Taking their place are Sai Sudharsan, Jitesh Sharma, and Harshit Rana.  The series opener was particularly significant as it saw debuts for three young players: Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, and Abhishek Sharma. Notably, Jurel is the only one among them with prior international experience, having made his Test debut earlier in 2024.

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Riyan Parag and Abhishek Sharma, on the other hand, were celebrating their much-deserved first selection for the Indian team in this series.

Team India captain Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to field first, putting the onus on Zimbabwe to set a strong total. This decision proved to be a wise one almost immediately. Right-arm pacer Mukesh Kumar justified his captain's faith by taking a wicket in his very first over. The first ball of the second over saw him dismiss Zimbabwean opener Innocent Kaia for a golden duck. Kaia misjudged a delivery and ended up dragging the ball onto the stumps while attempting a drive. This early breakthrough gave India a strong start in their title defense.

At the time of writing this report, Zimbabwe had reached 74 runs for the loss of 4 wickets after 12 overs. Brian Bennett provided a brief spark to the Zimbabwean innings, smashing three boundaries in quick succession at the start. However, his knock was short-lived as he departed for 22 runs off just 15 balls.

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WATCH HOW MUKESH RATTLED INNOCENT's STUMPS

India's Playing XI:

Shubman Gill(c), Abhishek Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Riyan Parag, Rinku Singh, Dhruv Jurel(w), Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed

Zimbabwe's Playing XI

Tadiwanashe Marumani, Innocent Kaia, Brian Bennett, Sikandar Raza(c), Dion Myers, Johnathan Campbell, Clive Madande(w), Wessly Madhevere, Luke Jongwe, Blessing Muzarabani, Tendai Chatara

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