Ind vs Zim 3rd T20I - India bat and bring in Prema Rawat as they eye clean sweep

India bat and bring in Prema Rawat as they eye clean sweep

Mandhana said the reason behind the decision was to give India's middle-order batters more game time

VLive Sports DeskSyndicated Wire Coverage (ESPNcricinfo / Sports Feeds)

Oct 20, 2026, 1:29 PM2 hrs ago

Shafali Verma made a half-century in the second T20IBCCI

Match at a Glance & Key Facts

TournamentZimbabwe Women in IndiaSeason 2026/27

Venue

Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur

Raipur

Format & Details

T20 • SINGLE

IND Women chose to bat.

KEY TAKEAWAYSQuick highlights & editorial summary

VLive Sports Desk

Editorial Angle:Analysis of India bat and bring in Prema Rawat as they eye clean sweep: Mandhana said the reason behind the decision was to give India's middle-order batters more game time — assessing tactical impact and tournament progression.
Score Snapshot:IND-W 173/3 vs ZIM-W — IND Women chose to bat.
Tactical Context:India captain Smriti Mandhana won the toss and chose to bat against Zimbabwe in the third T20I in Raipur.
Tournament Context:Part of Zimbabwe Women in India 2026/27. Follow real-time tournament standings, fixture progression, and live scorecards on VLive.

Toss India opt to bat vs Zimbabwe

India captain Smriti Mandhana won the toss and chose to bat against Zimbabwe in the third T20I in Raipur. Mandhana said the reason behind the decision was to give India's middle-order batters more game time.

India also rested left-arm spinner N Shree Charani and brought in legspinner Prema Rawat. They were defending a score for the first time this series, and Mandhana said any total "around 180-190 would be good".

Zimbabwe captain Josephine Nkomo wanted to bat first too, but said she did not expect the conditions to change much. Zimbabwe made three changes, bringing in Nyasha Gwanzura, Kudzai Chigora and Nomvelo Sibanda for Francisca Chipare, Michelle Mavunga and Olinder Chare

After sealing a nervy win in the first T20I thanks to Deepti Sharma and Niki Prasad's efforts, India posted a dominating win in the second T20I to seal the series.

India: 1 Smriti Mandhana (capt), 2 Shafali Verma, 3 Anushka Sharma, 4 Harmanpreet Kaur, 5 Niki Prasad, 6 Richa Ghosh (wk), 7 Deepti Sharma, 8 Arundhati Reddy, 9 N Shree Charani, 10 Nandani Sharma, 11 Kranti Gaud

Zimbabwe XI: 1 Kelis Ndhlovu, 2 Beloved Biza, 3 Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, 4 Sharne Mayers, 5 Josephine Nkomo (capt), 6 Nyasha Gwanzura, 7 Modester Mupachikwa (wk), 8 Kudzai Chigora, 9 Loryn Phiri, 10 Tendai Makusha, 11 Nomvelo Sibanda

Syndication & Sourcing Notice: Match coverage, narrative reporting, and statistics are syndicated from ESPNcricinfo and cricket wire data feeds. Curated, formatted, and enriched with real-time match state, scorecard snapshots, and key takeaways by VLive Sports Desk. Read our Editorial Guidelines & Syndication Standards.

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