By Kudzaishe Zvaguma
Zimbabwe suffered a heavy 72-run defeat to India in their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eight clash despite a heroic batting display from Brian Bennett in Chennai on Thursday.
Playing at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to field, hoping to contain India’s formidable batting line-up.
Instead, the hosts delivered a dominant performance piling up an imposing 256 for four from their 20 overs.
India’s innings was driven by aggressive stroke play throughout.
Abhishek Sharma set the tone with 55 from 30 balls, while captain Suryakumar Yadav struck a rapid 33 off just 13 deliveries.
Late acceleration proved decisive as Hardik Pandya smashed an unbeaten 50 from 23 balls, supported by a blistering 44 not out off 16 deliveries from Tilak Varma.
Zimbabwe’s bowlers struggled to stem the flow of runs despite wickets shared among Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava, Tinotenda Maposa and captain Sikandar Raza.
Chasing a daunting target, Zimbabwe showed determination but never fully threatened India’s total, finishing on 184 for six.
Opener Brian Bennett produced a magnificent unbeaten 97 from 59 balls, striking eight fours and six sixes in a lone effort to keep Zimbabwe in contention.
Raza added 31, but regular wickets disrupted momentum as partnerships failed to develop.India’s bowling attack maintained control throughout the chase.
Arshdeep Singh led the effort with figures of three for 24, applying pressure at crucial stages.
Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel claimed a wicket each, while Jasprit Bumrah and Pandya delivered disciplined spells to close out the victory.
The result strengthens India’s position in the Super Eight stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, while Zimbabwe must regroup quickly as they seek to keep their campaign alive in the remaining fixture.
