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India National Cricket Team captain Shreyas Iyer has scripted history after winning the toss in the three-match T20I series opener against the Zimbabwe National Cricket Team at the Harare Sports Club on Thursday (July 23) in Harare.
Iyer might have been searching for the first win as India’s T20I captain, but his incredible luck at the toss continued as he won yet another toss and decided to bowl first against Zimbabwe in Harare. Amid this, Mohammad Kaif urges Shreyas Iyer to show faith in Ravi Bishnoi.
Shreyas Iyer breaks MS Dhoni's record, enters history books after winning toss in Harare
It turned into a dream moment for Shreyas Iyer as he went past some of India's greatest captains, including MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, after winning the toss in the first T20I against Zimbabwe. Along with the historic milestone, India also handed a T20I debut to young fast bowler Ashok Sharma.
By winning the toss in Harare, Shreyas became the first captain in the history of men's T20Is to win the toss in each of his first eight matches as captain. No other captain has achieved this feat since the T20 format began.
Shreyas also became only the second captain in international cricket to win the toss in each of his first eight matches as captain. Before him, only former England captain Wally Hammond had managed to achieve this rare feat at the highest level.
Iyer’s lucky run at the toss has also taken him to the top among Indian T20I captains. He has now won eight consecutive tosses, breaking the previous record held by MS Dhoni, who had won seven tosses in a row. Dhoni was followed by Virat Kohli, who had won six consecutive tosses.
Most Consecutive Toss Wins by an Indian Captain in T20Is
8 - Shreyas Iyer (2026)*
7 - MS Dhoni (2010/12)
6 - Virat Kohli (2019)
5 - MS Dhoni (2007)
5 - Rohit Sharma (2020/22)
Shreyas Iyer joins elite list as India creates unique debut record in Zimbabwe
Interestingly, among captains from Full Member nations, only former West Indies captain Daren Sammy (10) and Pakistan captain Salman Agha (9) have won more tosses than the current Indian T20I captain. Amid this, Abhishek Sharma RULED OUT? Star India opener suffers injury scare in 1st T20I against Zimbabwe.
On the other hand, India has now handed T20I debuts to more players in Zimbabwe than in any other overseas country. So far, a total of 31 Indian players have made their T20I debut in Zimbabwe, followed by Zimbabwe itself (23), South Africa (21), the West Indies (11), and Sri Lanka (10).
I don’t know how it’s going to play: Iyer on Harare surface
Since it was his first match at the Harare ground, Iyer was not completely sure how the wicket would behave, but he felt there could be good bounce, so India went with three fast bowlers in the first game.
Iyer said at the toss, “We are going to bowl first. This is my first time here, so I don’t know how the wicket is going to play. But looking at the practice wickets and the wickets on the side, there was a decent amount of bounce. So definitely, that’s one of the aspects. I don’t know how it’s going to play, but we’re anticipating some bounce. We’re going with three seamers and one spinner.”
