Pakistan won the match by 6 wickets against Afghanistan at Dubai on 29th October. Pakistan won the match with 1 over left. Pakistan’s NRR is +0.638 whereas Afghanistan’s is +3.092 as Afghanistan have advantage given the fact that they have won 1 & lost 1.
Afghanistan took a bold decision to bat first as dew plays a huge part. Pakistan were set a target of 148 runs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took burden off by dismissing Rizwan for a paltry 8 runs as he has the knack of staying at the crease. In the power-play overs Pakistan scored 38 runs for the loss of 1 wicket. Mohammad Nabi the skipper took a brave decision by bowling out Mujeeb inside 9 overs as his lightning variations were too hot to handle. Mujeeb had figures of 14 for 1 wicket which increased the scoreboard pressure.
Babar Azam was playing his natural game of rotating strike & rotating strike. While at the other end Fakhar Zaman provided impetus by his aggressive stroke-play. Rashid Khan wasn’t introduced in the 1st 10 overs which was a bit shocking. In the 12th over Nabi provided a crucial break-through of Fakhar. Fakhar scored 30 runs in 25 balls which included 2 fours & 1 six. Boundaries were hard to come as spinners were in ascendancy. At that course of time Pakistan required 73 runs in 8.5 overs. Babar Azam was solid at one end playing cautiously as his wicket was of optimum level. There was a bit of banter going between Rashid & Babar where Babar was sledging Rashid to take his wicket.
In the last 6 overs Pakistan required 51 runs & then came Rashid who outfoxed Mohammad Hafeez. Afghanistan errored in calculation as in the last 5 overs there was only one over of spin which was of Rashid. The medium pace/ fast bowlers weren’t that much efficacious. Shoaib Malik & Babar played smartly as an odd boundary with 4-5 singles was enough. In the last 4 overs Pakistan required 38 runs & the onus was on Rashid Khan. Rashid almost had the wicket of Babar on 4th delivery but Naveen-ul- Haq didn’t hold on to it. At that time Babar was on 50 runs. Later on the final ball of the over Rashid had the last laugh as he bowled Babar Azam. Babar Azam scored 51 runs in 47 balls as he struck 4 fours.
In the last 3 overs Pakistan required 26 runs with Malik & Asif Ali at the crease. Naveen bowled a superb 18th over as he not only gave away 2 runs but got the wicket of the Legendary Shoaib Malik. Asif Ali refused to take a single on the final ball when Shadab Khan was on strike. In the last 2 overs Pakistan required not an improbable but challenging 24 runs .Karim Janat had the ball in his hand where he made the mockery of the required runs as Asif Ali smashed 4 sixes in 6 balls as Pakistan won the match.
Nabi’s brave decision of bowling out Mujeeb proved to be costly. Rashid bowled his heart out as he took 2 wickets & gave away 26 runs. Afghanistan need to balance the pace & spin ratio throughout 20 overs as recently their pacers haven’t produced any notable match winning results.
Once again Pakistan’s finishing up duties were performed by Asif Ali. Asif Ali is looking ominous as his devastating cameos are changing momentum within a blink of eye.
Opting to bat first Afghanistan had lost 4 wickets in the power-play overs as they scored 49 runs. The batters where just swinging their bat on each ball which resulted in 4 wickets. Afghanistan were reduced to 76-6 in 13 overs where it looked like they will get folded under 110-120 overs.
Skipper Mohammad Nabi & the all-rounder Gulbadin Naib got hold on the innings. They took time to assess the conditions & then went berserk. In the last 7 overs Afghanistan scored 71 runs & put on a below par yet decent score of 147 runs. Nabi scored 35 runs in 32 balls which included 5 fours. Gulbadin Naib scored a quick fire 35 runs in 25 balls which included 4 fours & 1 six. The contributions from lower-middle order showcased how much depth Afghanistan’s batting possesses.
There was a complete performance from Pakistan’s bowlers where every bowler had pressurized Afghanistan’s batters & also got beaten.
Pakistan’s bowlers would not like the fact that their 7 overs proved so much expensive. If Afghanistan had got off to a blazing start who knows Pakistan would had a target in excess of 180 runs. Pakistan’s next match is against Namibia on 2nd November at Abu Dhabi. Namibia has given Scotland a heart-attack which sends a message that Pakistan should not take Namibia lightly. Pakistan would hope to be the table-toppers as winning against Namibia would seal that spot.
Afghanistan’s batting costed them & they would hope that they will rectify their mistakes. Afghanistan should keep their heads up as they still have 3 matches left. Their next match is against Namibia on 31st October at Abu Dhabi. Afghanistan should look to disseminate Namibia in their next match .Their next 2 matches are against India on 03rd November & New Zealand on 07th November which could be similar to Pakistan. Afghanistan have a slight advantage as they are going to play all the three matches at Abu Dhabi. If Afghanistan can upset India or New Zealand then the Cricketing World will have a new Semi-Finalists.
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