Sanju Samson scored a responsible unbeaten 43 and India cruised to a five-wicket victory over Zimbabwe in the second One-Day International to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the three-match series on Saturday. India’s bowling attack was led by pacer Shardul Thakur.
While it wasn’t exactly a victory like the previous ODI, the KL Rahul-led team didn’t have to work too hard despite a mid-innings jolt because to the small 162-run target.
When sent to bowl, comeback player Thakur (3/38 in seven overs) expertly set it up and then took over as the major wrecker as the Indian bowlers once again triumphed to dismiss Zimbabwe for 161.
Thakur made his presence known and shook the Zimbabwe top-order with his twin blow in the 12th over in place of Deepak Chahar, who was unable to play due to his performance in the last ODI.
Then, even though they batted in different positions this time, Shikhar Dhawan and Shubman Gill displayed the same flair and power, each scoring 33.
However, the pair was unable to lead the squad to victory this time as India went through some uneasy moments after Dhawan left.
Since his 49-run performance against the West Indies in an ODI in Ahmedabad on February 9, this was Rahul’s first international game.
After Rahul’s brief visit, it was back to business as usual for Dhawan and Gill, who picked up where they left off in the previous day’s first ODI here.
