HARARE, Zimbabwe: Luke Jongwe took four wickets as Zimbabwe pulled off a surprise 19-run victory over Pakistan Friday in the second Twenty20 international of a three-match series at Harare Sports Club.
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss, opted to bowl, and the tourists restricted their hosts to 118-9 with 34-run Tinashe Kamunhukamwe the only batsman to impress.
Set a run-a-ball target for victory, Pakistan lost star opener Mohammad Rizwan for only 13 and 41-run Azam was the lone batsman to star as they slumped to 99 all out off 19.5 overs.
Right-arm medium pacer Jongwe (4-18) captured the wickets of Rizwan and Azam, and those of Haris Rauf and Arshad Iqbal as the Pakistan tail collapsed.
Ryan Burl (two), Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava (one each) were the other Zimbabwean wicket-takers.
The result levelled the series at 1-1 and it will be decided at the same venue Sunday as Pakistan seek a second successive T20 series win having beaten South Africa 3-1 before traveling to Zimbabwe.
Rizwan made 82 when Pakistan beat Zimbabwe by 11 runs Wednesday, but faced only 18 balls and hit one four before being caught by Tarisai Musakanda.
Fellow opener Azam lasted one hour, faced 45 balls and struck five fours before becoming the fourth Pakistan batsmen to fall, leaving the tourists on 78-4 after 15.5 overs.
With wickets falling cheaply, the tourists began the final over on 99-7 and needing 20 runs to snatch a dramatic victory.
But instead of a run fest, the wickets of Usman Qadir, Rauf and Iqbal fell without any addition to the scoreboard.
Earlier, Kamunhukamwe cracked four fours as he faced 40 deliveries in a 60-minute stand.
His innings ended when caught by Azam off the bowling of Danish Aziz, who was making his second appearance for the tourists.
Fellow opener Brendan Taylor, who missed the first match due to illness, lasted only seven balls before being caught by Mohammad Hafeez off a Faheem Ashraf delivery for five.
Apart from Kamunhukamwe, Regis Chakabva (18), Wesley Madhevere (16) and Tadiwanashe Marumani and Musakanda (13 each) reached double figures for the hosts.
Six Pakistan bowlers shared the wickets with Mohammad Hasnain (2-19) and Aziz (2-29) the most successful, while Ashraf, Iqbal, Rauf and Qadir took one each.
After the T20 series, Zimbabwe and Pakistan will play two Tests in Harare, beginning on April 29 and May 7.
Jongwe snatches four wickets as Zimbabwe surprise Pakistan in T20
https://arab.news/yaaab
Jongwe snatches four wickets as Zimbabwe surprise Pakistan in T20
- Zimbabwe pulled off a surprise 19-run victory over Pakistan Friday in second Twenty20 international of three-match series
- Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss, opted to bowl, and the tourists restricted their hosts to 118-9
Pakistan reports new polio case, taking 2025 tally to 31
- The virus infected a four-month-old girl in KP’s North Waziristan district
- Symptoms were detected in December last year, health authorities said
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has reported a new case of wild poliovirus in its northwest, taking the country’s total number of polio cases in 2025 to 31, health authorities said on Tuesday, highlighting the persistence of the disease in high-risk areas despite vaccination campaigns.
The latest infection was confirmed in a four-month-old girl from North Waziristan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health in Islamabad, which detected wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in laboratory samples.
“The child had onset of symptoms in December, and subsequent samples collected from her were positive for WPV1, the lab reported this week,” said the statement. “Therefore, this is the 31st case of 2025.”
Last year, Pakistan reported 20 cases from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, nine from Sindh and one each from Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan, according to health authorities. Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounted for more than half of Pakistan’s WPV1 cases in 2025, with 17 of the country’s 31 cases reported from the region.
“Ongoing security challenges have limited consistent access for polio teams in parts of southern KP, including North Waziristan, resulting in persistent immunity gaps and leaving children vulnerable to this paralytic disease,” the statement said.
It added that it was critical to ensure that every child is reached with the polio vaccine in every house-to-house campaign and has received full doses of routine immunization.
Polio is a highly contagious viral disease that can cause permanent paralysis, mainly in children under five.
Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where the disease remains endemic.
