Indian skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bat first in their last Super 12 clash against Zimbabwe at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Rohit made one major change in the playing XI by replacing designated finisher and wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik with Rishabh Pant.
“We will bat. It's the preference of the team to bat first, nothing to do with the pitch. We just want to bat first and give a chance to our bowlers to defend. One change, Rishabh Pant plays instead of DK, he is the only guy who hasn't played a single game on this tour including the warm-up games, we wanted to give him a game. Nothing changes, we need to do well as a team,” Rohit said after winning the toss.
A win against Zimbabwe will ensure that India finish on the top of Group 2 and face England in the second semi-final at Adelaide Oval on November 10. If Zimbabwe manage to pull off the tournament's last upset, India will face New Zealand in the first semi-final at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on November 9.
“We were looking to bowl first. The ball might skid through in the evening under lights. A couple of changes, Wellington and Munyonga are in, Milton has struggled a bit and we wanted to give Tony a chance. Luke Jongwe has an injury and we wanted the spin of Wellington Masakadza,” Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine said after losing the toss.
India and Zimbabwe have never faced each other in T20 World Cup. In bilateral series, the two have played seven T20Is against each other. India have won five out of seven T20Is.
India Playing XI: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant(w), Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
Zimbabwe Playing XI: Wesley Madhevere, Craig Ervine(c), Regis Chakabva(w), Sean Williams, Sikandar Raza, Tony Munyonga, Ryan Burl, Tendai Chatara, Richard Ngarava, Wellington Masakadza, Blessing Muzarabani
