Australia will look to finish the first leg of matches at the top of the points table with a crushing win over Zimbabwe when the two teams meet in Harare in the third game of the T20 tri-series. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 6pm (AEST). If someone just read out the scores without mentioning the teams involved in the previous game, chances are one would have guessed that one of those teams was Zimbabwe. The losing team, that is. For one, Zimbabwe have a very inexperienced side in the absence of their bigwigs but more importantly, the result of the previous did little to justify Pakistan’s top ranking in the T20 format. Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Reddit Email Share Sure it was a bouncy, pace-filled pitch at Harare. And sure, Pakistan might not have had an idea of that till they actually went out to bat on it. Instead, it’s full credit to Australia who fired their opponents out in a jiffy through a concerted bowling and batting effort of supreme pedigree. Billy Stanlake took advantage of the surprising bounce on offer from the Harare pitch which has usually helped spin in the white-ball format and sent back the top four Pakistan in a fiery spell of four overs he bowled in one go. By the time he was done with his bowling, Pakistan had slumped to 4 for 24 and despite a bit of a fight from the lower-order, they ended up with just 116. In response, if Pakistan thought they could make a match out of it, the in-form Aussie captain Aaron Finch left them gasping in awe at his stroke-play. He smashed a 33-ball 68 that included six sixes and four boundaries and with D’Arcy Short and Travis Head chipping in, Australia won it in the 11th over, to relegate Pakistan to their worst defeat in this format in terms of balls remaining. Zimbabwe might not be much of a match here given the loss of their key players. Payment issues have left them without quality and their defeat in the first game to Pakistan underlined this to a great extent. Advertisement Advertisement Pakistan piled up 182 with only Kyle Jarvis and Tendai Chisoro pulling the run-rate back, but even then, Jarvis suffered an injury and might not feature in this game. When they batted, Zimbabwe managed just 108 – not too different from what Pakistan did against Australia – and fell to a 74-run loss. Prediction Australia to make it two wins in a row with a thumping victory over an underwhelming Zimbabwe. Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this match in Harare from 6pm (AEST) and don’t forget to drop a comment in the section below.<doc-sep>Australia vs Zimbabwe: Australia beat Zimbabwe in Harare. (Source: AP) Australia vs Zimbabwe: Australia beat Zimbabwe in Harare. (Source: AP) Australia vs Zimbabwe, 3rd T20 of Tri-series: Australia continue their winning run in this tri-series as they defeat Zimbabwe by 100 runs. After posting a mammoth total of 229/2 in 20 overs, Australia restricted Zimbabwe to 129/9 to etch the win.Courtesy a brutal and lethal performance from Aaron Finch where he scored a record-breaking 172, Australia put themselves in the driver’s seat early in the game. Zimbabwe on the other hand started the innings in an aggressive manner but lost wickets in a quick succession later in the innings. Andrew Tye was the pick of the bowlers as he returned with figures of 3/12 in 4 overs. This is Australia’s second win on the trot after a dismal run in England across the limited overs format where they lost 6 matches consecutively.<doc-sep>
Toggle between tabs for LIVE score and ball-by-ball updates Second T20I preview: Fast bowler Billy Stanlake claimed four wickets and captain Aaron Finch blazed his way to an unbeaten half-century as Australia crushed Pakistan by nine wickets in a Twenty20 tri-series match on Monday. Pakistan, who thumped Zimbabwe by 74 runs in the opening game on Sunday, were stunned by Stanlake's early burst of 4-8 and were dismissed for 116. Earlier, Finch opted to field after winning the toss and Stanlake blew away the top order before Andrew Tye finished off the tail with 3-38. Shadab Khan top-scored with 29 as Pakistan top order batsmen crumbled against Stanlake's pace and bounce. Finch then led Australia to 117-1 in 10.5 overs by smashing six 6s and four 4s in an unbeaten 68 off 33 balls. "We had a disappointing tour of the UK. It's great for us to get a nice start in the series," Stanlake said, referring to Australia's six defeats against England in last month's five one-day internationals and one-off T20. "My role is to be aggressive up front and take wickets in the powerplay." Finch picked up three slip catches as Pakistan was reduced to 24-4. "The tone the bowlers set with the ball on a pretty good wicket was fantastic," Finch said. "We've been putting in plans, it did not come off in England, (but) it was a pretty polished performance here." Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed said his team's torrid start was tough to overcome. "The toss is very important, if you lose too many wickets in the first six overs, you can't survive in the match," he said. "Credit to Stanlake, he bowled with pace and bounce." Australia take on Zimbabwe in the next match on Tuesday. With inputs from AP