Zimbabwe taking it "one game at a time" as semi-final talk intensifies

After stunning Pakistan on Thursday to draw level on points with second-placed South Africa, Zimbabwe have become the talk of the T20 World Cup. Star allrounder Sikandar Raza, however, refuses to be distracted

October 27 is a day many cricket fans in Zimbabwe will never forget. They'd beaten Pakistan before – as recently as April 2021, they completed a 19-run win in a T20I in Harare – but not like this.

Craig Ervine won the toss in Perth and elected to bat, a move which immediately paid off as he and Wessly Madhevere struck 22 runs off the first eight deliveries. Zimbabwe finished the powerplay with a healthy haul off 47 for 2 but the innings soon tailed off as Pakistan's bowlers hit their lengths: 130 for 8 at close and everything to do with the ball.

Fortunately, their bowlers were more than up to the challenge, taking regular wickets to stunt Pakistan's momentum. Brad Evans, playing just his fifth T20I, then held his nerve at the death, defending 11 runs off the final over to seal a one-run win for Zimbabwe.

Initially placed in a group alongside Ireland, Scotland and West Indies, the African side, who had never previously reached the second round of a T20 World Cup, were widely considered to be underdogs to even progress beyond round one.

Now, they have outclassed Ireland and Scotland to secure a spot in the Super 12s and find themselves joint-second in group two, with one win and one no result (against South Africa) after two matches. Their remaining fixtures are favourable, with clashes against Bangladesh and the Netherlands preceding a showdown with India at the MCG. India, one point clear at the top of the table, still have to face second-placed South Africa, who themselves are yet to face Pakistan.

^{Sikandar Raza has been Zimbabwe's standout performer [Paul Kane/Getty Images]}

Talk has already turned to the semi-finals, but for Sikandar Raza, once again at the heart of the action with three wickets and a crucial final-ball run out, that noise is all external. The squad are laser-focused on their clash with Bangladesh on October 30.

"We're going to take one game at a time," Raza insisted. "All our energy and focus was on Pakistan, now it shifts to Bangladesh, and we'll do our analysis and take one game at a time.

"But I genuinely believe in this group of boys and what we've done is open the group. The Irish boys did it in the other group and it's nice to be here with the group not just wide open, but Zimbabwe have got a really good chance to achieve something. Everyone who plays good cricket can basically win and you never know where Zimbabwe end up.  

"We're not going to start looking and thinking about the semi-final; we're going to take one game at a time and look at Bangladesh."

Reflecting on his side's victory over Pakistan, Raza believed they could win "before the first ball was bowled".

THE BIG MATCH

Who: Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Where: The Gabba, Brisbane

When: Sunday, October 30 (1pm local time, 3am BST)

Prediction: Zimbabwe

"I personally thought we were 15 or 20 runs short, but I really believe in this group of boys, and if we field well, take all our chances and cut those important twos we could win the game," he said. "The way [Richard] Ngarava and [Blessing] Muzarabani started those first two overs and then we had early wickets.

"[At the death] I think all of us could be the go-to bowlers. When the skipper asked me should Brad [Evans] bowl the 19th or 20th, my opinion was we try and kill the game with Ngarava. The more runs we leave for the youngster [to defend] the better but the way [Evans] bowled and held his nerve, credit to him.

"Since I've been part of Zimbabwe cricket, I'd rate it the best win we've had. There's no better stage: this is the World Cup and to beat Pakistan by one run with a modest total [on the board], you have to do everything right to defend that. That's the best victory I've been a part of with Zimbabwe."

Against Bangladesh on Sunday, Zimbabwe will more than fancy their chances. They're currently trailing in 12-7 in the head-to-head record but completed a 2-1 series win over the Tigers earlier in the summer.

^{Bangladesh defeat the Netherlands in their tournament opener before losing to South Africa [Cameron Spencer/Getty Images]}

In Raza, they have an allrounder in world-beating form – he has 145 runs, eight wickets and an economy of 6.06 from five World Cup outings and also scored two half-centuries against Bangladesh earlier this year, captain Ervine has a half-century under his belt and the explosive Madhevere appears to be growing in maturity with every innings. Ryan Burl, meanwhile, hasn't fired in Australia but like Raza will take confidence from smashing a half-century against the same opponents just a few months ago.

With the ball, in addition to Raza, Ngarava has "been bowling exceptionally" while of players to bowl more than five overs, Muzarabani's 7.06 economy is the highest.

They shouldn't, however, underestimate Bangladesh, who will be desperate to return to winning ways after receiving a 104-run thrashing from a Rilee Rossouw-inspired South Africa.

They've found runs hard to come by – Afif Hossain's 38 is the highest individual knock while Litton Das tops the run-scoring charts with 43 – but Taskin Ahmed was a nuisance with the ball against the Netherlands, taking 4 for 25. Though wicketless, Mustafizur Rahman has led the bowling attack, conceding just 45 runs – including phenomenal figures (in the circumstances) of 0 for 25 against South Africa – in eight overs.

Whatever happens, however, Raza and his teammates are playing for a higher purpose than just World Cup wins: "We have a lot of youngsters taking up the sport back home; a lot of parents are accepting their kids can have a future in it.

"This group has an added responsibility to make sure cricket grows in Zimbabwe. We want to achieve something where not just the players and their families, but everybody can truly believe there is a future in the sport and we can raise the flag high."