Harare, Sep 7: A sparkling unbeaten 73 off 43 balls from Kamil Mishara powered Sri Lanka to a 2-1 T20I series win over Zimbabwe with an eight-wicket victory on their last game of the tour at the Harare Sports Club on Sunday.
Chasing a steep target of 192, Sri Lanka’s middle order finally clicked, building on a solid 50-run opening stand between Pathum Nissanka (33) and Kusal Mendis (30). Just when it looked like the chase would be a cakewalk for Sri Lanka, Mendis was removed by Brad Evans, while Sikandar Raza dismissed Nissanka.
But young Mishara was impressive in hitting six fours and two sixes in his unbeaten knock. Kusal Perera, returning to the playing after being dropped for the second game, was not out on 46 off 26 balls as the duo guided the side home with 14 balls to spare.
Zimbabwe had earlier posted what looked like an above-par 191/8, thanks to a well-compiled fifty from Tadiwanashe Marumani and a series of valuable contributions throughout the batting order.
It was a collective effort that saw the hosts do the hard yards with the bat and run hard between the wickets. What also helped them was Sri Lanka’s bowlers, barring Dushan Hemantha and Dushmantha Chameera, toiling without much reward, and the visitors being a little clumsy on the field, allowing the home side to score a few extra runs.
For Sri Lanka, the series win is a timely boost ahead of the Men’s T20 Asia Cup, starting on September 9 in the UAE. Zimbabwe, meanwhile, are scheduled to face Namibia in the qualifiers.
Brief scores: Zimbabwe 191/8 (Tadiwanashe Marumani 51, Sikandar Raza 28; Dushan Hemantha 3-38, Dushmantha Chameera 2-33) lost to Sri Lanka 193/2 in 17.4 overs (Kamil Mishara 73 not out, Kusal Perera 46 not out; Brad Evans 1-28, Sikandar Raza 1-29) by eight wickets. (IANS)
