Australia vs Zimbabwe, 3rd Match - Live Cricket Score, Commentary

Series: Australia and Pakistan in Zimbabwe T20I Tri-Series, 2018 Venue: Harare Sports Club, Harare Date & Time: Jul 03, 10:00 AM LOCAL

Australia were ruthless against Pakistan in their opening clash. © Getty

That's all from us folks! Hope you enjoyed the cracker. Until next time then ...

POST MATCH THOUGHTS -

Finch, Australian captain and Man of the Match: (On his innings) Good to get a few out of the middle and break a record. I thought we were a bit sloppy in the field today to be honest and Zimbabwe came out firing, as we expected with such a total. But we could have been polished in the fielding I guess. (On mixing the bowlers on a dry pitch) Short showed some skill, also Agar, Tye and Maxwell. Shows that there is very little margin for error on such tracks. We bowled really well in the middle part (Where this knock ranks) Right up there obviously, highest individual score and these might not happen often, so it's special.

Masakadza, Zimbabwe captain: Just when we thought it couldn't get tougher after the first game, it did. Credit to him (Finch), he played really hard. Tough to stop a player when he goes like that. I think we can bowl a bit better first up, in the Powerplay where we have conceded a lot in both the games. Apart from that, we've done decently, especially our top order but need support from others. Need someone to take responsibility. Hopefully, we can turn things around tomorrow against Pakistan.

THAT'S THAT - AUSTRALIA WIN BY 100 RUNS

Finch show all the way and once he got going Zimbabwe never really were in the game. He smashed 172 - the second highest score in T20s and the highest score in T20Is - to leave the opposition deflated.

He became only the second player to break the record twice for the highest individual score in a format in international cricket after Brian Lara. The Windies legend, who broke Gary Sobers' (365 not out) record for the highest individual score in 1994 scoring 375, emulated himself ten years later when he broke the same record held by Matthew Hayden (380) by scoring unbeaten 400 - both against England in St John's, ten years apart.

Zimbabwe, bruised and battered, weren't in the chase despite a promising start. The powerplay yielded 63 runs for the loss of two wickets but it was the Australia show all the way. Wickets kept coming and the chase got stuck in the taxiway refusing to take off. It was all too easy for the bowlers and made merry against a hapless opposition.

. One opener on 46, the other on 172!!

clash, live on Fox Sports from 6pm AEST!

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Hello and welcome to the live blog of the match three of the T20I tri-series in Harare. Zimbabwe are taking on Australia today.

It's a good time to learn about Finagle's corollary to Murphy's law. "Anything that can go wrong, will -- at the worst possible moment."

Zimbabwe are learning. They are at the unwilling epicentre after all. After being forced to field an overwhelmingly impoverished side, thanks to five key players making themselves unavailable for the tri-series, Zimbabwe have now lost Kyle Jarvis too, who's been ruled out of the series with a broken right thumb that he sustained while fielding against Pakistan.

And in a typical overreaction from the cosmos, Zimbabwe will be up against an Australian side that's gone from bullied to bullying in the course of one T20 International against Pakistan, which saw them canter to a win in a 117-run chase with 9.1 overs to spare, and with nine wickets in hand. In a nutshell, when Zimbabwe take on Australia in the third match of the tri-series at the Harare Sports Club on Tuesday (July 3), it could be all damn graceful -- or most probably not.

From Australia's perceptive, two matches in two days seem hectic, is hectic, but it comes with the promise of keeping the red-hot form intact, something that this Australia side hasn't known through the entirety of their recent limited-overs tour of England.