Masuku debuts, Curran back as Zimbabwe bowl in opening T20I

Toss Zimbabwe chose to bowl vs Afghanistan

Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza opted to bowl first against Afghanistan in the first T20I of their three-match series in Sharjah. Ben Curran returns to the white-ball side after an injury break, but Blessing Muzarabani misses out after he failed to recover from a niggle in time. Bowler Ernest Masuku makes his T20I debut for Zimbabwe as well.

"Looks like a fresh wicket, a bit of moisture as well; we will try to make early inroads and put them under pressure as well," Raza said.

Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran said he would have opted to bowl first too if he got the chance, but that they will now "try to put a good total on the board. We have got some new good guys in the squad, trying to give them that mentality: Don't put pressure on yourself, enjoy your cricket and your skills."

Afghanistan have won all but two of the 21 games the two sides have played in this format, including the most recent five T20Is between the two sides, dating back to December 2024.

The two teams recently played in an ODI tri-series which also featured Bangladesh. They met in the final, when Afghanistan came away victorious in a dominant seven-wicket win.

Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran (capt), Sediqullah Atal, Mohammad Akram, Azmatullah Omarzai, Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai, Shahidullah Kamal, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Noor Ahmad

Zimbabwe: Brian Bennett, Ben Curran, Innocent Kaia, Sikandar Raza (capt), Tadiwanashe Marumani (wk), Ryan Burl, Wessly Madhevere, Brad Evans, Newman Nyamhuri, Wellington Masakadza, Ernest Masuku