Indian captain Shreyas Iyer was elated to have his first win as T20I skipper after defeating Zimbabwe by seven wickets in the first T20I of the ongoing three-match series at Harare Sports Club in Harare on Thursday, July 23.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Iyer heaped praise on Mayank Yadav and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for turning things around in India’s favour. While Mayank Yadav scalped two wickets, conceding 18 runs in his four-over spell, Sooryavanshi amassed his maiden fifty of his career in the 126-run chase.
“Exceptional. They were tremendous in terms of execution and me getting my first win, can’t be happier. As I mentioned earlier, I was anticipating the bounce and there was decent amount of bounce on this wicket, especially from the hard length. And also it was variable at the start. I personally feel that in both innings it was there. But an exceptional start given by Mayank, the way he bowled in terms of executing his line and length, not giving them room to score runs. I think that’s very critical for us, and then Vaibhav coming in the powerplay giving us exceptional start,” Iyer said after the game.
“In every team there is going to be a batter who is going to take the team to the hilt and post a decent total. I think they analyzed the wicket pretty well and they started building partnerships. That was when I wanted to rotate my bowlers as well and see to it that they get decent rhythm because we’re going to play two more matches over here. So, everyone getting chances and opportunities to come and bowl and bat, that actually gives a lot of confidence to them as well,” he added.
Delving into the details of the game, Zimbabwe batted first and posted a mediocre total of 125/7 in 20 overs. Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav scalped two wickets apiece. In the chase, India finished off the game in 13.2 overs with seven wickets in hand. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was the wrecker-in-chief with a 50-run knock.
“Exceptional batting by him. He’s fearless youngster and the way he approached this innings was phenomenal. So, yeah, I think he’s played here before, so he’s got a fair idea about how the wickets are. He’s got 175 I guess in the under-19 final, so definitely possesses immense confidence when he steps onto the field. So, good to see it today. Good start to the series,” he concluded.
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