Ire vs Zim 2021: Ireland win 2nd T20I to level series

Having lost the first T20I by the barest of margins, Ireland made a comeback in the second T20I to win it and level the 5-match series 1-1 with 3 more matches to go. Ireland failed to chase down a meagre target of 118 in the first T20I at the same venue but they find the heart to chase down 153 against the same opponents at the same venue two days later in the second T20I!

Image Credits: Inside Sport

Having won the toss, Zimbabwe opted to bat first. It was a slow start for them with the bat as they managed to scored just 64 runs in the first 10.1 overs losing 5 wickets. Then an unbeaten 88-run stand for the sixth wicket between Milton Shumba (46* off 27) and Ryan Burl (37* off 33) helped them get to post a competitive total of 152/5 on the board in 20 overs.

Ireland pacer Shane Gatkate was their pick of bowlers with 3 wickets from his 4 overs conceding just 20 runs. Ben White with a wicket is the only other wicket-taker for the home team in this innings!

Chasing a good total, Ireland openers started off superbly with a 59-run stand for the first wicket which was broken with the fall of Paul Stirling on 37. Kevin O'Brien continued on his merry way with the bat as he scored 60 runs off just 41 deliveries to take them close to the target. He was dismissed in the 16th over with Ireland needing just 24 runs from the last 26 deliveries.

George Dockrell remained unbeaten on 33* off 26 deliveries to take them over the line with 7 wickets in hand and 9 balls to spare in their innings. Ryan Burl with 2 wickets and Tendai Chatara with a wicket are the wicket-takers in the Zimbabwe bowling line-up.

Kevin O'Brien has been adjudged as the Player of the Match for his match-winning knock with the bat. The 5-match T20I series is currently level 1-1 with 3 more matches to go in the series. The third T20I will be played at Bready on Wednesday (Sep 01).

Brief Scores: Ireland - 153/3 in 18.3 overs (Kevin O'Brien - 60, Ryan Burl - 2/24) defeated Zimbabwe - 152/5 in 20 overs (Milton Shumba - 46*, Shane Gatkate - 3/20) by a margin of 7 wickets