Sikandar Raza-led Zimbabwe on Sunday lost the 5th T20I to India by 42 runs in Harare. Despite going 1-0 up with a 13-run win in the opening fixture, the hosts slumped to a 4-1 series defeat. After losing the final encounter, Zimbabwe captain Raza said the side has to rectify their problems at the top of the order with the bat, adding that attitude on the field is also a grey area for them to work on in future.
“I thought Blessing (Muzarabani) bowled well the whole series. Batting-wise, we are still below par, but we are starting to rectify the problems at the top. You are going to have bad games here and there. The grey area for me will remain our attitude in the field, we are still making a lot of mistakes, but that’s controllable, we are going to keep working hard and hopefully keep getting better,” said Raza after the match ended.
“It was unfortunate that Richie (Ngarava) wasn’t fit at the start of the series. Had he been declared fit, he was gonna play all the games. To have him fit is certainly a blessing because we all know his quality. To have Richie and Blessing … every time I was in trouble I looked up to them and they did the job for the team, really happy for those two boys,” he added.
Zimbabwe are now slated to play a one-off Test match against Ireland later this month, but Raza may not be a part of it, citing a lack of match practice in red-ball cricket.
“My workload needs to be managed. I haven’t played any four-day cricket in the last two years after my surgeries. My shoulder isn’t 100%, I don’t want to be a guy who just gets a jersey.”
“I need to go back, respect my domestic cricket and also respect my domestic cricketers who have put in a lot of runs. I will go back to play domestic cricket and test my own fitness. I am still available for Test match cricket but at this point of time, I am not because I haven’t played a lot of four-day cricket. I’ll leave for Manchester for The Hundred in a few days time, I am looking forward to that,” he concluded.
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