Sikandar Raza scored a vital late hit for Zimbabwe as they defeated Sri Lanka by six wickets in a thrilling victory, with Brian Bennett leading the chase with a cool undefeated half-century in their Group B match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Thursday.

Zimbabwe established the basis for chasing a competitive target of 179 with a solid opening partnership between Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani. Marumani led the way with a forceful innings, smashing six fours and a six to score 34 runs off 26 balls, as the pair put up 68 runs for the opening wicket. Meanwhile, Bennett gained ground steadily after an early break.

Zimbabwe maintained the necessary pace and was at 78/1 at the halfway point. Before Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka intervened to momentarily halt the advance, Ryan Burl added more momentum with a rapidfire 23 off 12 deliveries, highlighted by a massive six.

But during a scorching partnership between Bennett and Raza, the game swung dramatically in Zimbabwe’s favor. In his 45 off only 26 balls, Raza launched a ferocious counterattack, hitting four sixes and two boundaries as the chase was in a close position. By attacking the spinners in particular, he shifted the tide and lessened the strain on the visiting team.

Bennett maintained the innings with maturity, switching strike skillfully while taking advantage of bad deliveries, and completed his half-century off 41 balls. Between the 15th and 17th overs, Zimbabwe scored 46 runs, which allowed them to win the match against Sri Lanka.

When Dushan Hemantha quickly dismissed Raza and Tashinga Musekiwa, Sri Lanka made a late comeback attempt, but Munyonga maintained his composure under pressure. He finished undefeated on 59 off 47 balls after hitting a game-changing six in the second-to-last over, and Bennett ended the match in fine form by hitting a boundary through extra cover.

Zimbabwe’s disciplined bowling attack kept Sri Lanka’s total, which they had set at 178/7 in their 20 overs earlier, attainable.

Zimbabwe secured their second-highest successful chase in T20 internationals with the triumph, which also guaranteed them an undefeated finish in Group B, which included Sri Lanka, Australia, and Ireland. Despite periods of dominance, Zimbabwe’s precise hitting in the final overs brought Sri Lanka down.

“All I said to my boys after we lost the toss was: If we are truly playing good cricket, why should the toss play such a huge part in our mindset? ” When we’re playing well, that’s all that matters.

As he put it, “I’m really happy,” Raza praised Zimbabwe’s strategic clarity and preparedness for enabling them to adjust in stressful situations. I believe that’s because, in the first place, we’ve prepared for any eventuality. Everything is on the board when you’re chasing, in any case. Additionally, we have the appropriate people to deploy at the appropriate moment. During the chase, we made around four adjustments to our lineup.

Raza reaffirmed the idea behind their campaign as Zimbabwe cemented their position as one of the tournament’s surprises. “However, we can hold our heads up high knowing that we made it there undefeated. And you never know if we can win two of those three games. Everyone loves an underdog story, as I’ve been saying all along,” he said in conclusion.

Brief scores:
Sri Lanka 178/7 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 62, Pavan Rathnayake 44; Graeme Cremer 2-27, Blessing Muzarabani 2-38)
Zimbabwe 179/6 in 19.3 overs (Brian Bennett 59*, Sikandar Raza 45; Dushan Hemantha 2-36)