With the T20 cricket tri-series that they are hosting now halfway over, Zimbabwe must win in their second match against Pakistan on Wednesday — a match that will live stream from Harare — or face effective elimination from any chance of reaching the final. But as ESPN CricInfo recorded, Pakistan already made a statement against the hosts in the tri-series opener, rolling to a thoroughly comprehensive 74-run victory.
While Zimbabwe bowlers performed perhaps better than expected, holding the world’s top-ranked side to 184 runs while taking four wickets after winning the toss and inserting Pakistan at the bat, the hosts appeared tentative and unsure, never getting their run chase off the ground and falling to 27 for two after the first six overs.
Zimbabwe fared even worse against Australia, the third-ranked side hoping to sweep through the series unbeaten — which will likely elevate them to the world’s top spot — a match that saw Australia captain Aaron Finch, as CricBuzz records, blast out 172 runs, just three shy of the all-time T20 record held by West Indies’ Chris Gayle. But Finch fell to Zimbabwe’s Blessing Muzarabani via hit wicket before he could equal Gayle’s mark.
To find out how to watch a live stream of the T20 match between Zimbabwe and Pakistan, see the streaming information at the bottom of this article. First ball is scheduled for 10 a.m. Central Africa Time on Wednesday, July 4, at 10,000-seat Harare Sports Club Cricket Ground in Harare, Zimbabwe. In Pakistan, that start time will be 1 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time, while in India the match gets underway at 1:30 p.m. India Standard Time. In the United States, fans will need to either stay up very late or wake up extremely early to watch the match at 4 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, 1 a.m. Pacific.
In Australia, the T20 tri-series match pitting Zimbabwe against top-ranked Pakistan gets underway at 8 p.m. on Monday, Australian Eastern Standard Time, 6 p.m. Western Time.
Finch’s innings, coming off just 76 deliveries, did set a record for T20 international play, as the BBC noted, breaking the previous mark of 156 set in 2013 by — Aaron Finch. Gayle’s record 175 for all T20 play came in an Indian Premier League match, with Gayle playing for the franchise club Royal Challengers Bangalore.
To hold on to the top spot in on the ICC table in world T20 cricket, Pakistan must win against Zimbabwe, and then pick themselves up and defeat Australia on Thursday, according to an analysis by the Australian Cricket.com.au site.
Australia bowlers stifled the normally potent Pakistan attack in the sides’ first meeting of the tri-series, as CricInfo recounted, holding the Men in Green to just 116 all out, making for an easy chase and quick, nine-wicket win.
The Pakistan Television Corporation, that country’s state-owned TV network, will carry the Australia vs. Pakistan T20 match live on PTV Sports — and will make a free live stream of the crucial match available as well. Fans should be aware that the PTV Sports’ live stream will be viewable only by fans inside of Pakistan. PTV also often makes a live stream available on the PTV Sports Official YouTube channel.
In Australia, the subscription online sports service Foxtel will live stream the T20 tri-series matches against Pakistan and Zimbabwe. Fans in India who want to live stream the T20 series should check out Sony Six .
To watch a live stream of the T20 action in the second Zimbabwe vs. Pakistan meeting of the tri-series in the United States, the best option is to sign up for a one-week free trial of the Sling TV international sports package. The package includes Willow TV, which will carry live streaming video of the crucial match. A credit card will be required, but if the Sling package is canceled prior to the end of the seven-day period, no charges will be incurred.