Pakistan vs Namibia, 31st Match, Group 2 at Abu Dhabi,T20 World Cup, 2021.
Pakistan 189 for 2 (Rizwan 79*, Babar 70) beat Namibia 144 for 5 (Wiese 43, Williams 40, Imad 1-13, Hasan 1-22) by 45 runs
With one foot in the semi-final already, and having an opportunity to tick off some other boxes before the knockouts, Pakistan did exactly that by opting to bat first, putting on a total of 189, and then defending the score with ease.
Pakistan's 45-run win over Namibia has now confirmed their final-four spot, leaving only Scotland in their path to a 100% group-stage win rate.
Watch cricket live on ESPN+
Sign up for ESPN+ and catch all the action from the Men's T20 World Cup live in the US. Match highlights of Namibia vs Pakistan is available here in English, and here in Hindi (US only).
It was Pakistan's first time winning a game while batting first in this tournament. Their captain Babar Azam mentioned that as their main objective at the toss and he backed his words up with a 49-ball 70 as well. His opening partner Mohammad Rizwan complimented him with 79. And an all-round bowling effort saw them cruise to victory.
The only box Pakistan did not tick was in testing their bench strength. Pakistan played the same XI like their first three games, and Azam said that was because the Namibia contest was their first in Abu Dhabi. Although Pakistan's bowlers could take only five wickets in Namibia's chase, they did well to restrict their opponents to 144 with Imad Wasim and Hasan Ali going at economies of less than six.
But while Rizwan was looking off-colour, Azam kept finding the gaps with his controlled aggression and together they reached 59 in ten overs. At that stage, Azam was on 43 and Rizwan 16 in 25 balls.
But with ten wickets in hand, and only ten overs left, the duo had the liberty to up the risks. Azam's 70 took them to their fifth T20I century stand - the most by any pair in the format's history - before the first wicket fell in the 15th over. But by then, Pakistan were at 113.
Mohammad Rizwan: at the top of his game, Namibia vs Pakistan, T20 World Cup, Group 2, Abu Dhabi, November 2, 2021
Mohammad Rizwan: at the top of his game•ICC/Getty Images
Rizwan changes gears
Aggression was the only way to approach the last five overs. But Fakhar Zaman did not last long, caught by the wicketkeeper Zane Green as he dived to his left after being briefly wrong-footed. That brought in Mohammad Hafeez at No. 4, and he began with an assault that saw him make 32 in 16 balls that included five fours. Most of those boundaries were deft shots, either scooping fours past short fine leg or threading late cuts between backward point and short third man.
#viral #pakvsind #indvspak #viratkohli #babarazam #rizwan #muhammadamir #shaheenafridi #shaheenshahafridi #t20worldcup #2021
Pakistan 189 for 2 (Rizwan 79*, Babar 70) beat Namibia 144 for 5 (Wiese 43, Williams 40, Imad 1-13, Hasan 1-22) by 45 runs
With one foot in the semi-final already, and having an opportunity to tick off some other boxes before the knockouts, Pakistan did exactly that by opting to bat first, putting on a total of 189, and then defending the score with ease.
Pakistan's 45-run win over Namibia has now confirmed their final-four spot, leaving only Scotland in their path to a 100% group-stage win rate.
Watch cricket live on ESPN+
Sign up for ESPN+ and catch all the action from the Men's T20 World Cup live in the US. Match highlights of Namibia vs Pakistan is available here in English, and here in Hindi (US only).
It was Pakistan's first time winning a game while batting first in this tournament. Their captain Babar Azam mentioned that as their main objective at the toss and he backed his words up with a 49-ball 70 as well. His opening partner Mohammad Rizwan complimented him with 79. And an all-round bowling effort saw them cruise to victory.
The only box Pakistan did not tick was in testing their bench strength. Pakistan played the same XI like their first three games, and Azam said that was because the Namibia contest was their first in Abu Dhabi. Although Pakistan's bowlers could take only five wickets in Namibia's chase, they did well to restrict their opponents to 144 with Imad Wasim and Hasan Ali going at economies of less than six.
But while Rizwan was looking off-colour, Azam kept finding the gaps with his controlled aggression and together they reached 59 in ten overs. At that stage, Azam was on 43 and Rizwan 16 in 25 balls.
But with ten wickets in hand, and only ten overs left, the duo had the liberty to up the risks. Azam's 70 took them to their fifth T20I century stand - the most by any pair in the format's history - before the first wicket fell in the 15th over. But by then, Pakistan were at 113.
Mohammad Rizwan: at the top of his game, Namibia vs Pakistan, T20 World Cup, Group 2, Abu Dhabi, November 2, 2021
Mohammad Rizwan: at the top of his game•ICC/Getty Images
Rizwan changes gears
Aggression was the only way to approach the last five overs. But Fakhar Zaman did not last long, caught by the wicketkeeper Zane Green as he dived to his left after being briefly wrong-footed. That brought in Mohammad Hafeez at No. 4, and he began with an assault that saw him make 32 in 16 balls that included five fours. Most of those boundaries were deft shots, either scooping fours past short fine leg or threading late cuts between backward point and short third man.
#viral #pakvsind #indvspak #viratkohli #babarazam #rizwan #muhammadamir #shaheenafridi #shaheenshahafridi #t20worldcup #2021
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