Australia's preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup step up this week when they face Zimbabwe in a three-match ODI series at Harare Sports Club.
The series begins on Tuesday, September 15, with further matches on Friday, September 18 and Sunday, September 20. All three games will be played in Harare and begin at 5:30pm AEST.
The location makes this considerably more important than a routine bilateral series. Zimbabwe will co-host the 2027 ODI World Cup alongside South Africa and Namibia, while Harare Sports Club itself is one of the confirmed World Cup venues. Australia therefore have an opportunity to gather valuable information about the conditions they could encounter when defending their World Cup title next year.
Zimbabwe vs Australia ODI Series Schedule
| Match |
Date |
Venue |
Start Time (AEST) |
| 1st ODI |
Tuesday, September 15 |
Harare Sports Club |
5:30pm |
| 2nd ODI |
Friday, September 18 |
Harare Sports Club |
5:30pm |
| 3rd ODI |
Sunday, September 20 |
Harare Sports Club |
5:30pm |
Australia Squad
Australia have selected a strong squad, although Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc will not join the touring party until the subsequent ODI series against South Africa.
Australia: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Joel Davies, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Oliver Peake, Matthew Renshaw, Billy Stanlake and Adam Zampa.
Marnus Labuschagne is a notable omission following a difficult period in ODI cricket, while the retirements of Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis have created opportunities throughout Australia's middle order.
That could make this series particularly important for players such as Cooper Connolly, Josh Inglis, Matthew Renshaw and Oliver Peake as Australia begin settling on their preferred combination for the World Cup.
Connolly is perhaps the most interesting of the younger players after scoring 149 in his most recent ODI against Bangladesh. With Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh returning to the top of the order, however, Australia need to determine where Connolly fits in their best XI.
Zimbabwe Squad
Zimbabwe enter the series with several significant changes.
Richard Ngarava, who captained Zimbabwe to a 2-1 ODI series victory over Bangladesh in July, has been ruled out with a lower-back injury. Sikandar Raza will captain the side in his absence.
Zimbabwe have also recalled veterans Brendan Taylor and Graeme Cremer. Taylor returns to the ODI squad at 40 years of age and could take on wicketkeeping duties, while leg-spinner Cremer returns to the format eight years after his previous ODI appearance.
Zimbabwe: Sikandar Raza (c), Ben Curran, Blessing Muzarabani, Brad Evans, Brendan Taylor, Brian Bennett, Craig Ervine, Ernest Masuku, Graeme Cremer, Innocent Kaia, Newman Nyamhuri, Ryan Burl, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza and Wessly Madhevere.
Ngarava's absence is particularly significant against Australia's powerful batting order, leaving Blessing Muzarabani as the key figure in Zimbabwe's pace attack.
Zimbabwe vs Australia Series Preview
Australia are deserved favourites, but the gap between the teams may not be quite as enormous as the headline odds suggest.
Zimbabwe defeated Bangladesh 2-1 in their most recent ODI series, with all three matches played at Harare Sports Club. Brad Evans was outstanding in that series, producing two half-centuries and taking five wickets to be named Player of the Series.
Zimbabwe also won the most recent ODI between these countries, producing a famous three-wicket upset in Townsville in 2022.
Australia's recent ODI results have been mixed. They lost their series against both Pakistan and Bangladesh 2-1 earlier this year, although neither was played with anything approaching their strongest XI. Their recent 10-match ODI form reads five wins and five defeats.
The return of Head, Marsh, Green, Hazlewood and Zampa considerably strengthens the side.
Harare also hasn't traditionally troubled Australia. They have won seven of their 10 ODIs at the venue, although only Marsh has previously played an ODI in Zimbabwe among the current Australian squad.
One interesting factor will be the unusually early starts. All three matches begin at 9:30am local time. That potentially increases the importance of the toss and conditions during the opening powerplay, particularly for the team batting against the new ball first. Australia are specifically viewing these matches as preparation for the predominantly daytime cricket expected at next year's World Cup.
Zimbabwe vs Australia Betting Odds
Australia are extremely short favourites for the opening ODI. At the time of writing, Australia are $1.10 to Zimbabwe at $6.50 in the 1st ODI.
At those prices, backing Australia outright offers very little appeal.
That means the more interesting betting opportunities are likely to come from player markets rather than simply taking Australia to win.
Zimbabwe vs Australia Betting Tips
Mitchell Marsh – Top Australia Run Scorer
Backing Mitch Marsh provides an interesting alternative to the obvious pick in Travis Head.
The Australian captain is the only member of the squad with previous ODI experience in Zimbabwe, having scored 222 runs across five matches on the 2014 tour.
He also averaged 60.80 in ODI cricket during 2025.
With Marsh expected to bat near the top of the order, anything significantly longer than Head in Australia's top-run-scorer market could be worth considering.
Mitch Marsh Top AUS Run Scorer 1st ODI
$4.50
Blessing Muzarabani – Zimbabwe Top Wicket Taker
Muzarabani looks Zimbabwe's standout bowling option following Ngarava's withdrawal.
The 203cm quick has been in excellent form across formats and took 4-17 against Australia at the 2026 T20 World Cup. He finished that tournament with 13 wickets, behind only Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy among the leading wicket takers.
More importantly from a betting perspective, Ngarava's absence should leave Muzarabani with an even greater share of Zimbabwe's important overs.
This could be one of the better series markets if bookmakers offer sufficiently attractive odds.
Blessing Muzarabani Top ZIM Wicket Taker 1st ODI
$3.00
Australia Most Sixes
One early market worth watching is Australia to hit the most sixes.
Australia clearly possess more boundary-hitting power through Head, Marsh, Green and Inglis, but around $1.35 is probably too short to recommend as a standalone bet.
This becomes considerably more appealing if you can find an Australian bookmaker post $1.50 or better.
