India beat Zimbabwe by nine wickets in Raipur to win T20 series, Shafali and Smriti star
Shafali Verma's 55 and Smriti Mandhana's unbeaten 47 sealed a nine-wicket win in the second T20 and the three-match series for India.
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India won the second match of the three-match T20 series against Zimbabwe at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur by nine wickets, taking the series with a game to spare. Batting first, Zimbabwe scored 103 for 8 and set India a target of the same number.
India's top order had failed completely in the previous match. This time they made up for it, winning with 11 overs to spare. Opener Shafali Verma and captain Smriti Mandhana hit a flurry of fours and sixes.
From the start of the chase, Shafali and Smriti began hitting boundaries. By the fourth over Shafali had cleared the boundary twice. Their aggressive batting put Zimbabwe's bowlers and fielders under pressure. India had fifty on the board in the fifth over itself.
Shafali scored 55 with six fours and four sixes. Smriti supported her well, making an unbeaten 47 with six fours and two sixes. India won the match with 67 balls remaining. The next match of the series will be played at the same Raipur stadium on Tuesday, October 20.
Zimbabwe had taken an aggressive approach from the outset in the first match. In the second match they won the toss and chose to bat first, intending to play the same way. But Kelis Ndhlovu, who scored 42 in the previous match, could not open her account this time. Nandini Sharma bowled her and dealt Zimbabwe a major blow in the fourth over.
Two overs later, Deepti Sharma had Beloved Biza (7) caught by Harmanpreet Kaur and sent her back to the pavilion. Sharon Mayers, who scored 43 in the first match, managed only 9 in this one and was out bowled by Kranti Goud.
At that stage, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano and captain Josephine Komo (unbeaten 27) added 45 for the fourth wicket and steadied the innings. That partnership took Zimbabwe to a hundred. Richa Ghosh caught Chipo behind the stumps off Niki Prasad's bowling. Chipo made 34 with five fours. Niki then bowled Nyasa Gwanzuru, who failed to score. Niki took 2 wickets, conceding 7 runs in 2 overs.
