Zimbabwe opt to bat in bid to make tri-series final; SL make two changes

Toss Zimbabwe opt to bat vs Sri Lanka

Zimbabwe won the toss and decided to bat first against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi. Sri Lanka are yet to win a game on the tour of Pakistan, and a loss tonight will see them out of the T20I tri-series final contention.

Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza made a point to mention the impact of the low temperatures, with it expected to impact the way the pitch plays as the game goes on. Dew is also expected to play a role. Zimbabwe made one change to their side, with Dion Myers coming in for Tony Munyonga.

That said, Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka said he would have bowled first in any case, and that they would once more play with seven specialist batters in the side. Sri Lanka made two changes, with Maheesh Theekshana brought back into the XI, while there was a debut for Pavan Rathnayake.

Rathnayake, a batter known for his powerful stroke play, made his white-ball debut in the ODI leg of this tour, and is in the side following an impressive run of domestic form. Those who missed out are Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Kamindu Mendis.

Whether or not dew will appear will dictate how the pitch plays, with a dewy evening likely to improve batting later on. A score of 160 should be par, and that has indeed proved to be the case in previous games in the series.

Zimbabwe: Brian Bennett, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brendan Taylor (wk), Ryan Burl, Sikandar Raza (capt), Dion Myers , Tashinga Musekiwa, Brad Evans, Wellington Masakadza, Tinotenda Maposa, Richard Ngarava

Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (wk), Kamil Mishara, Kusal Perera, Janith Liyanage Dasun Shanaka (capt), Pavan Rathnayake, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Eshan Malinga