India will square off against Zimbabwe in the first ODI at the Harare Sports Club, Harare on Thursday. Team India is in great form as they recently defeated England by 2-1 and then won the ODI series against the West Indies by 3-0.
Zimbabwe, on the other hand, are also full of confidence and they will look to be at their best against the Indian juggernauts. Zimbabwe recently defeated Bangladesh by 2-1 in the ODI as well as T20I series and they aim to replicate the same success against India. However, there is no denying the fact that they will have their work cut out.
Sikandar Raza had a dream run in the ODI series against Bangladesh as he scored 252 runs in three matches. Furthermore, he scalped five wickets to bag the Player of the Match series. Thus, he is going to hold the key for the African nation.
On the other hand, KL Rahul will play International cricket after February 2022 and he will look to hit the ground running. Rahul will also lead the team in the ODI series while Shikhar Dhawan will play the deputy role. The young players in the team will look to impress in order to make a case for themselves for the T20 World Cup.
Zimbabwe will have to bring their A-game to the fore if they are to challenge the Indian team while it will be a good opportunity for the young Indian players to grab their chances.
Match Prediction: India will enter the contest as favorities against Zimbabwe but the hosts have the skills to spring a surprise.
India ODI squad: KL Rahul (c), Shikhar Dhawan (vc), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Ishan Kishan (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna, Mohd Siraj, Deepak Chahar.
Zimbabwe squad: Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva (captain), Tanaka Chivanga, Bradley Evans , Luke Jongwe , Innocent Kaia, Takudzwanashe Kaitano , Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tadiwanashe Marumani, John Masara, Tony Munyonga , Richard Ngarava , Victor Nyauchi , Sikandar Raza , Milton Shumba , Donald Tiripano.
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