1st match, Zimbabwe vs Pakistan Twenty20 Tri-Series at Harare, Live Jul 1 2018

Form guide
Zimbabwe WLLLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WWWWW

In the spotlight
It has been nearly two years since Elton Chigumbura played international cricket, but with his recall, Zimbabwe have brought back one of their more recognisable faces. A mainstay in Zimbabwean cricket since his debut in 2004, Chigumbura is perhaps more suited to T20Is than any of his team-mates. Chigumbura has seen as many ups and down in Zimbabwean cricket as just about anyone, and if anyone is likely to be up for a rebuilding job, it is the 32-year-old allrounder.

Fakhar Zaman is supposed to be the ideal T20I cricketer, but strangely enough, he hasn't quite managed a devastating knock in the format befitting his reputation. His match-winning century in the Champions Trophy final against India showed his comfort against the best opposition, but in T20Is, he has never gone past 50, with a somewhat unremarkable average of 23 from 16 innings. Even a strike rate of 135 - by no means unimpressive - doesn't quite scale the heights you would expect of a player who looks like he could smash every ball for six. Against a weakened Zimbabwe, he has the ideal opportunity to right all of that.

Team news
Zimbabwe's line-up is anybody's guess, but one positive for the hosts is their fast bowling is largely unaffected by the player boycott, with Chris Mpofu, Blessing Muzarbani and Kyle Jarvis all likely to start.

Zimbabwe (possible): 1 Brian Chari, 2 Chamu Chibhabha, 3 Tarisai Musakanda, 4 Hamilton Masakadza, 5 Elton Chigumbura, 6 Peter Moor (wk), 7 Malcolm Waller, 8 Tendai Chisoro, 9 Kyle Jarvis, 10 Blessing Muzarabani, 11 Chris Mpofu

While it will be hard to say how experimental Pakistan get, they might want to give their best players a run to start the tour.

Pakistan (possible): 1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Hussain Talat, 4 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt, wk), 5 Asif Ali, 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Hasan Ali, 10 Mohammad Amir, 11 Usman Khan

Pitch conditions
It's the middle of winter in Zimbabwe, with conditions expected to be cool and dry. The surface can offer something early on, but this is a late start. Hence, the side winning the toss may not mind batting first and setting up the game.

Stats and trivia
Zimbabwe have played only two T20Is in the past two years, both against Afghanistan in February this year. They lost both games.

Pakistan's longest-serving player Shoaib Malik averages 66.72 in his last 24 T20I innings. In more than half of these - 13 - he has finished unbeaten.

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