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Can Shreyas Iyer Rewrite History? One Toss Away From Wally Hammond's 88-Year-Old Record
Cricket Gully | July 25, 2026 5:39 PM CST

India will be looking to clinch the three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe when the two sides face off in the second T20I at the Harare Sports Club. A win for India will ensure a comfortable 2-0 lead for them, but the second T20I could also turn out to be a historic fixture for skipper Shreyas Iyer.

 

Iyer has had some extraordinary luck with the coin since taking over India's T20I team. Another toss victory will see him top an 88-year-old international record.

 

Shreyas Iyer Chasing Historic Toss Record

 

Shreyas Iyer became the T20I captain of India after guiding the team successfully in the IPL. Unfortunately, he could not start his captaincy stint at the international level on a successful note. India could not win any T20I series during the tours of Ireland and England.

 

That was rectified in India's series-opening T20I against Zimbabwe. The visitors put in an all-round effort with the bat and ball to notch up their first win under the captaincy of Iyer and took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

 

In addition to the victory, Iyer keeps a perfect record at the coin toss as well, having won every toss in his first 8 international games as captain.

 

This feat has already seen him become the first captain in men's T20I cricket to win the toss in each of his first eight games. The previous best was set by Bahamas captain Gregory Taylor, who won the toss in his first seven T20Is as captain.

 

Should Iyer come out on the winning side in the second T20I, he will have won the toss in each of his first nine international matches as captain, a feat no international captain has ever achieved before. The closest any skipper has come to achieving this is Wally Hammond, the legendary former England cricketer, who came out on top in the toss of each of his first eight international games as captain back in 1938.

 

Also Read | Gautam Gambhir Under Fire After Ex-India Selector's Strong Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Comments

 

India Eye Series Win After Dominant Start

 

India began the series brilliantly by bowling Zimbabwe out for 125/7 in the first T20I. The bowlers took control of the game and the line, with the batsmen finishing the job comfortably.

 

Teenage opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi stole the limelight, smashing a 19-ball fifty in the process. The 15-year being the youngest Indian to reach the mark.

 

After the satisfaction of an opening win, India will eye the series in Harare, and Shreyas Iyer will want to make history as the second T20I in a nearly ninety-year-long uncharted zone for international cricket.


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