Published: Feb 23, 2026, 03:00 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 23, 2026, 03:00 PM (IST)
Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza is not worried about not playing a T20I in India for over ten years. He believes his team has the ability to produce a strong performance in the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Zimbabwe surprised everyone by beating Sri Lanka and Australia in the group stage. Now they are in a tough group with champions India, runners-up South Africa, and two-time winners West Indies. Their first Super 8 match is against India at Wankhede Stadium on Monday.
“Regardless of how the result goes, I don’t think it will be because we couldn’t adjust to the conditions. That is not how Zimbabweans are thinking or that is not how we are thinking,” Raza told reporters.
“We are having our warm-up now, we are going to have our nets session. We absorb; we watch a lot of cricket (and) some of us have played here as well and the majority of us haven’t,” said Raza, who played for Punjab Kings in IPL 2023 and 2024.
When asked about adjusting to Indian conditions after playing in Sri Lanka so far, Raza said the team is focused on giving their best.
“Instead of worrying about the smaller grounds or anything… it’s going to stay the same for both teams. What we are looking for is a top, top performance from Zimbabwe and that will help us to win the game,” he said.
Raza added that experience in India helps, but lack of it should not be used as an excuse.
“Playing in India certainly helps. But if a team or if an individual hasn’t had that experience, rather than counting or using that as an excuse, I personally think we can block that.”
“It’s the same soil, the weather, the breeze, the outfield, the players. If you just try and take all those things away for one game, which is tomorrow, and try and see if you can put your best foot forward after training well on the training surfaces… it doesn’t guarantee you success, but at least you’re giving yourself the best chance to be successful.”
When asked about Zimbabwe’s goals in the tournament, Raza was honest.
“How many of you have picked Zimbabwe to be a semifinalist?… Clearly one,” he said after a pause.
“Maybe we haven’t done enough yet, and these are things that motivate us. These are the challenges we look forward to. I don’t know if we’ll make it or not. But one thing I can assure you from a Zimbabwe captain’s and a team point of view, (that) we’ll give it our best shot.“
“… Only one guy put his hand up that Zimbabwe will get to the semifinal, so clearly we’ve done enough — but not well enough, or not enough — for all of you to raise your hands. Hopefully, I’d like to see that one day,” he added.
Raza said the confidence in the team has grown with every win.
“With every win it has changed. (After) the first game I could see that there was confidence and belief but with every game that has gone by, it got better and better,” he said.
“After the Ireland game when we qualified, I could see that the boys are as much as that they are hungry but they are also relieved the fact that we have qualified.”
“That’s what win does. It sort of lifts you, the confidence comes back and you start believing a lot more,” Raza added.
Zimbabwe last played a T20I in India during the 2016 T20 World Cup. Now they are ready to take on India with full belief and no excuses about conditions. Raza wants his team to focus on training hard and giving their best shot in Monday’s big game.
For all latest updates of T20 World Cup 2026 you can visit: https://www.cricketcountry.com/icc-mens-t20-world-cup-2026/
