It was the game that had everything. A last ball finish, two stunning catches and a major confrontation between the Zimbabwe captain and Ireland’s star bowler. The rest of the six-match tour promises to be fiercely contested.

The bottom line from Thursday’s first T20 international in Harare is that Ireland have lost another close game – a worrying habit which refuses to go away – and they must win the next two this weekend to claim a first series victory in Zimbabwe.

Mark Adair became the second fastest bowler to 100 T20I wickets – behind Afghanistan superstar Rashid Khan – when he dismissed top scorer Raza and then held a catch, despite “taking a bang” after diving full length, to take the match to the final ball from which Zimbabwe scored the two runs to win it with the last pair at the wicket.

“I landed awkwardly but am all fine today, which is good news, and it was also a dot ball which is always good,” said Adair, who took two wickets and conceded just four runs from the 19^th over, leaving Barry McCarthy to defend nine in the last.

“I’ve bowled some rubbish in 19^th and 20^th (overs), so I was pretty lucky to get a good one. I thought Barry got unlucky at the end, and looking back at the game it’s tough to take and it would have been great to get across the line.

“The closer you get to a milestone, other people remind you about it, my old man knows all my stats, but in years to come I’ll look back and probably appreciate what I’ve done a bit more.”

Raza and Josh Little, who was back to somewhere near his best bowling, added the spice to the occasion with a war of words after the left arm paceman had blocked Zimbabwe’s best player when attempting a second run. That spilled over when Curtis Campher became involved and Raza raised his bat towards him and it needed the umpires to step in to prevent it getting out of control.

It has certainly added spice to a series that has, ridiculously, yet to get get television coverage outside the host country.