Why are India and Zimbabwe players wearing black armbands during the 1st Women’s T20I?

India and Zimbabwe players wore black armbands in the T20I between the two sides at the Shaheed Veer Narayan International Stadium in Raipur on Friday in honor of former Zimbabwean cricketer and umpire Sarah Dambanevana, who died earlier this week.The players and match officials also honored her memory with a minute of silence before the start of the game.“The Indian cricket team, Zimbabwe cricket team and match officials are wearing black armbands and observed a moment of silence in honor and memory of former Zimbabwean cricketer and umpire Sarah Dambanevana following her recent death,” the BCCI said in a post on X.Dambanevana died after a short illness. She represented Zimbabwe as a fast bowler before switching to umpiring where she became one of the pioneering female umpires in the country.In 2022, she became the first Zimbabwean umpire to join the ICC Development umpires Panel. She received her first ICC appointment at the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in January 2023.At the age of 36, she had played 72 senior internationals, including 10 men’s T20Is, 14 women’s ODIs and 48 women’s T20Is.Her last match was a T20I between Ireland and Thailand on 1 February 2026 during the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 Global Qualifier in Nepal.Meanwhile, India have decided to take on Zimbabwe in the first T20I of the three-match series in Raipur on Friday. The series marks the start of Smriti Mandhan’s tenure as India’s captain, while middle-order batsman Niki Prasad is set to make her international debut.The series is also the first bilateral international competition between India and Zimbabwe.