ZIM v AUS Second ODI Preview: Playing XIs, Conditions and Dream11 Picks
Australia and Zimbabwe meet in the second match of their three-match ODI series at Harare Sports Club on Friday, September 18, 2026, with the game scheduled to start at 1 PM IST; Australia lead the series 1-0 after the opening fixture. In the first match Matt Renshaw scored 109 off 94 balls and also bowled 1/32, while Nathan Ellis took his maiden ODI five-wicket haul, finishing with 5/31.
Renshaw’s century pushed Australia close to the 300-run mark in the series opener and Ellis’s 5/31 was central to Australia’s victory. Zimbabwe were described as having missed opportunities in the field, with their batting labelled poor and their momentum slipping with the ball. Historically, Australia have won 30 out of 34 ODIs against Zimbabwe, with one game washed out and Zimbabwe winning the remaining three matches.
The forecast provided in the source shows clear and sunny weather for the second ODI on Thursday, with a maximum temperature of 27°C and average humidity around 30-35 percent. The Harare wicket is reported as sluggish and slowing as the match progresses, which is why teams have tended to prefer batting first there. The surface is said to offer decent assistance to bowlers, with pacers able to extract seam movement and spinners getting grip and turn once the ball is older. The report stresses that batters will need to stick to the wicket to post runs on this strip.
Zimbabwe’s XI named in the source is: Brian Bennett, Ben Curran, Innocent Kaia, Brendan Taylor (wk), Craig Ervine, Sikandar Raza (c), Wessly Madhevere, Brad Evans, Newman Nyamhuri, Wellington Masakadza, Blessing Muzarabani. The Australia XI listed is: Mitchell Marsh (c), Travis Head, Cooper Connolly, Josh Inglis (wk), Alex Carey, Matt Renshaw, Oliver Peake, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson. The Australia side names Mitchell Marsh as captain and Zimbabwe names Sikandar Raza as captain in the published line-ups.
The Dream11 positional recommendations provided in the source list wicket-keepers as Alex Carey and Brendan Taylor; batters as Mitch Marsh and Brian Bennett; all-rounders as Matt Renshaw, Brad Evans, Sikandar Raza and Cooper Connolly; and bowlers as Nathan Ellis, Xavier Bartlett and Newman Nyamhuri. One set of captain and vice-captain suggestions in the piece is: Captain first-choice Matt Renshaw, captain second-choice Nathan Ellis; vice-captain first-choice Brad Evans, vice-captain second-choice Newman Nyamhuri.
An alternate set of Fantasy captaincy recommendations in the same source gives Captain first-choice Sikandar Raza, captain second-choice Mitch Marsh; vice-captain first-choice Cooper Connolly, vice-captain second-choice Brian Bennett. The article also states, without additional qualification, that Australia showed they can adapt in these conditions and outplay the hosts and concludes: "Hence, we back Australia will win the second ODI on Friday."
The second ZIM vs AUS ODI will take place on September 18, 2026, at Harare Sports Club, Harare.
