Win Projections to be updated soon
Rawalpindi, 18 November 2025:
Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza said his team is prepared to challenge Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the T20 tri-series, stressing that his side has the talent and belief to compete with the best.
Addressing a pre-series press conference at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Raza said Zimbabwe’s focus remains on maximising its own strengths rather than tailoring plans around the opposition.
“We’re not thinking about what we’ve planned specifically against Pakistan,” Raza said. “My focus is on what we can achieve by trusting the potential of our own players. If we use the information and experience we have, bowl well and field sharply, we can beat any team on our day. Our record shows we have beaten every major side we’ve played. The goal is to reach the final, and we’ll take it one game at a time.”
Raza, who has played under Shaheen Shah Afridi in the Pakistan Super League, said friendships do not influence national commitments.
“Shaheen’s loyalty lies with Pakistan, mine with Zimbabwe,” he said. “We don’t discuss conditions or player weaknesses. When we meet, we talk about life, not cricket.”
Raza pushed back against suggestions that Zimbabwe’s current group has underachieved or failed to make international progress.
“This group is judged very harshly,” he said. “We went to Australia and beat them for the first time. We performed well at the 2020 T20 World Cup, and last year we beat all the Asian teams that toured Zimbabwe.
One challenge is that we have a smaller player pool and a lighter international calendar. But Zimbabwe Cricket is expanding the game into remote areas, and in the next three to five years our pool will be stronger.”
Raza said facing Pakistan in home conditions is tough but also the type of contest his team embraces.
“We play cricket to test ourselves against the world’s best,” he said. “Instead of seeing it as a challenge, we see it as an opportunity. If we win, some may call it an upset. For us, it won’t be. We know how hard we’ve trained and how much belief there is in this team.”
Asked to comment on debates over the best Asian teams, Raza declined to be drawn in.
“Since I’m in national colours, my focus is Zimbabwe,” he said. “We’re the second-best team in Africa, and we want to keep challenging South Africa whenever we get the chance. Who is first or second in Asia is not my concern right now.”
Raza said Pakistan will be the toughest opponent in local conditions.
“Pakistan in Pakistan is always strong,” he said. “Teams are hardest to beat at home. That’s true for Pakistan here, and it would be the same for Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe.”
Zimbabwe face Pakistan in the tournament opener on November 18.
