Zimbabwe Vs India Live Score, 1st T20I: Kelis Ndhlovu Goes On The Attack, Punishes Kranti Gaud For Two Fours

Kelis Ndhlovu is starting to find her range! She hammers Kranti Gaud for back-to-back boundaries, first driving a full delivery hard and wide of mid-off before cutting a good-length ball past point. Gaud follows that up with a delivery that's too short and wide, and Ndhlovu misses the pull, but India are penalised with a wide. Zimbabwe are beginning to pick up the pace.

A single for Kelis Ndhlovu at 1.5 as she works Nandani Sharma's short-of-a-length delivery towards deep backward square-leg. Modester Mupachikwa then gets forward and drives the next ball nicely, but finds the fielder at extra-cover. No run there, and Zimbabwe move along cautiously.

And we're off in Raipur! Kelis Ndhlovu and Beloved Biza are out in the middle to get Zimbabwe's innings underway, with Ndhlovu taking strike. Kranti Gaud has the new ball in hand for India Women. Let the battle begin!

The pre-match formalities are out of the way in Raipur, although the stands look rather sparse with plenty of empty seats. Before the action gets underway, both teams observe a minute's silence in memory of Zimbabwean umpire Sarah Dambanevana, who passed away a few days ago at the age of 36.

A solemn moment before the cricket takes centre stage. Zimbabwe's national anthem plays first, followed by India's, with the national song of India playing now.

India Women (Playing XI): Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana(c), Anushka Sharma, Harmanpreet Kaur, Niki Prasad, Richa Ghosh(w), Deepti Sharma, Shree Charani, Arundhati Reddy, Nandani Sharma, Kranti Gaud

Zimbabwe Women (Playing XI): Kelis Ndhlovu, Beloved Biza, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Sharne Mayers, Michelle Mavunga, Nyasha Gwanzura, Francisca Chipare, Modester Mupachikwa(w), Josephine Nkomo(c), Olinder Chare, Tendai Makusha

Smriti Mandhana is keeping things simple after winning the toss. With dew expected to play a role, India Women have decided to bowl first. The bowling combination features three pacers and two spinners, with Shafali Verma available as the sixth option. Mandhana also has a couple of young faces to look forward to, with Niki Prasad making her debut and Anushka Sharma in the mix.

India Women have won the toss and have opted to field.

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The 1st T20I between India-W and Zimbabwe-W is scheduled to start at 7 PM IST, with the toss scheduled at 6:30 PM IST.

India-W: India-W: Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana (c), Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Minnu Mani, Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Nandani Sharma, Anushka Sharma, Kranti Gaud, Jintimani Kalita, Sree Charani, Niki Prasad, G Kamalini (wk), Prema Rawat

Zimbabwe-W: Sharne Mayers, Chiedza Dhururu (wk), Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano, Modester Mupachikwa (wk), Josephine Nkomo (c), Nomvelo Sibanda, Loryn Phiri, Nyasha Gwanzura, Francisca Chipare, Kelis Ndhlovu, Michelle Mavunga, Olinder Chare, Kudzai Chigora, Beloved Biza, Tendai Makusha

Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh (CSCS) said female fans will be allowed into the stands free of charge for all three India-Zimbabwe T20Is in Raipur after Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai suggested the move.

The India-W vs Zimbabwe-W 1st T20I will be telecast live on Star Sports Network and streamed on the JioHotstar app and website in India from 7 PM IST onwards.

Welcome to our live coverage of the 1st T20I match between India women and Zimbabwe women in Raipur! Get ready for an action-packed evening as the Women in Blue take the field. Stay tuned with us today for live scores, team updates, and all the ball-by-ball action right here.