Cricket: Zimbabwe beats Pakistan in latest upset at ICC Men’s T20 World Cup

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is in full swing. Zimbabwe held its nerve for a 1-run victory over Pakistan in the latest upset at the tournament in Australia, Thursday (Oct 27).

Three games in Group 2 took place Thursday with South Africa crushing Bangladesh by 104 runs. Rilee Rossouw posted the first century of the tournament.

Pakistan’s brittle middle-order batters were restricted at 129-8 in a thrilling game at Perth after Zimbabwe chose to bat first and struggled against pace on a bouncy wicket to make 130-8.

It just proved enough for Zimbabwe, helped by 14 extras.

Unorthodox spinner Sikandar Raza bagged 3-25 and brought Zimbabwe back in the hunt in the 14th over with the wickets of Shadab Khan and Haider Ali off successive deliveries.

Raza then dealt a major blow by having top-scorer Shan Masood (44) stumped off a wide ball down the leg side in the next over.

"I’m lost for words, my throat’s dry probably because of all the emotions," Raza said.

"The way our seamers started at the top as well is just unbelievable and the way we backed it up in the field and the way we kept believing, I don’t think there’s any words I can share right now."

Third-place Zimbabwe, whose opening group game was abandoned against South Africa, has three points, one more than Bangladesh.

Pakistan is in trouble with zero points. It was Pakistan’s second successive defeat after a nerve-wracking loss against arch-rival India.

About the ICC Men's T20 World Cup

The ICC T20 World Cup is the apex global event for T20 cricket, the game’s fastest growing format.

Australia was originally scheduled to host the event in 2020, before it was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic. 

The world’s best players from 16 teams will play 45 matches around the country.

It’s the first time Australia hosts the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. In March 2020, it hosted the Women's T20 World Cup. The final in Melbourne was won by Australia over India in front of 86,174 spectators, a record crowd for women's sport on the island and the second-highest crowd ever recorded for a women's sporting event globally.