Zimbabwe chose to bat v Pakistan

Zimbabwe won the toss for the third straight match, and, as they did previously, opted to bat in the first T20I in Rawalpindi. On perhaps the flattest pitch so far on the tour - the match carries the potential to be a high-scorer - Zimbabwe skipper Chamu Chibhabha was aware of the need to put up a big total to challenge Pakistan. The visitors have made a few changes, with big-hitting Elton Chigumbura getting his first game of the tour. So do Ryan Burl and Tendai Chatara, with Craig Ervine and Milton Shumba missing out.

Pakistan, smarting from their first ODI defeat since a loss to India at the 2019 World Cup, handed a debut to legspinner Usman Qadir. Imad Wasim, normally a regular in this format, missed out, while Khushdil Shah and Haider Ali were retained from the final ODI. Shaheen Afridi was rested, while Mohammad Hafeez, who missed the ODIs, returned to the middle order.

Pakistan: 1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Babar Azam (capt), 3 Haider Ali, 4 Mohammad Hafeez, 5 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Wahab Riaz, 9 Haris Rauf, 10 Mohammad Hasnain, 11 Usman Qadir

Zimbabwe: 1 Chamu Chibhabha (capt), 2 Brendan Taylor (wk), 3 Ryan Burl, 4 Sean Williams, 5 Wesley Madhevere, 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Tendai Chisoro, 9 Tendai Chatara, 10 Richard Ngarava, 11 Blessing Muzarabani