Zimbabwe fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani will miss the forthcoming T20I tri-series against Pakistan and Sri Lanka owing to a back issue.
The 29-year-old pacer, a key member of Zimbabwe’s bowling attack, will miss the entire series as he recovers.
In his absence, left-arm seamer Newman Nyamhuri, who is yet to make his T20I debut, has been picked as a replacement. The selectors have otherwise kept the same group that played in Zimbabwe’s recent home T20I series against Afghanistan, which they lost 0-3.
The right-arm pacer, who had missed the final two T20Is of the series, went 2 for 41 in the opening encounter before being sidelined by injury. His absence will be a big setback for Zimbabwe, given his experience and ability to extract bounce and movement from subcontinent wickets.
Nyamhuri, on the other hand, adds a refreshing element to the mix. Since his international debut in December 2024, the 19-year-old has represented Zimbabwe in four Tests and four One-Day Internationals. Despite being included to Zimbabwe’s T20I team for the tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand in July, he did not play any of the matches.
Zimbabwe, led by Sikandar Raza, will begin their tri-series campaign against hosts Pakistan on November 17 in Rawalpindi, followed by a match against Sri Lanka at the same site on November 19.
The teams will next proceed to Lahore, where Zimbabwe will face Pakistan again on November 23 and Sri Lanka on November 25. The top two teams from the group round will advance to the final, which will take place on November 29 in Lahore.
Zimbabwe updated squad for T20I tri-series:
Sikandar Raza (captain), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Graeme Cremer, Bradley Evans, Clive Madande, Tinotenda Maposa, Wellington Masakadza, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Tony Munyonga, Tashinga Musekiwa, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Newman Nyamhuri, Brendan Taylor
India
