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SHARJAH: Mohammad Nawaz’s fiery five-fer, including a hat-trick, rattled Afghanistan as Pakistan secured the tri-series title at the iconic Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Sunday.
Set 142, Afghanistan crumbled under pressure and were bundled out for just 66 runs in 15.5 overs.
Afghanistan had a similar start to Pakistan as they lost their opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz (5) in the opening over.
The next wicket came on the fourth ball of the fourth over as Sediqullah Atal (13) was caught by Faheem Ashraf. The wicket, however, sparked a massive collapse that Afghanistan could not recover from.
With Mohammad Nawaz’s introduction into the attack in the last over of the powerplay, things got ominous for Afghanistan. He first removed Darwish Rasooli for nought and then Azmatullah Omarzai (0) to put Pakistan in a commanding position.
Furthermore, he sent Ibrahim Zadran (9) packing on the first ball of the next over to bag a hat-trick. As a result, Afghanistan were 32-5 in 7.1 overs.
Afghanistan continued to lose wickets with no major contribution from the middle order, which eventually handed Pakistan a comprehensive victory.
For Pakistan, Mohammad Nawaz remained the standout bowler, taking five wickets, whereas Abrar Ahmed and Sufiyan Muqeem picked up two wickets each.
Earlier, Rashid Khan’s three-wicket haul restricted Pakistan to 141-8.
After opting to bat, Pakistan put on a shambolic batting display and could only manage to score 141 for 8 in their 20 overs.
Afghanistan put Pakistan under pressure right from the start as out-of-form Sahibzada Farhan was castled on the third ball of the opening over.
Following an early wicket, Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman tried to rebuild after a slow start. Both batters batted cautiously until the last ball of the eighth over.
As soon as Noor Ahmed and Rashid Khan came to bowl, Pakistan batters looked in trouble. Both bowled in tandem and halted Pakistan’s progress.
Saim Ayub was the first to go, caught after making 17 off 19 balls with the help of two fours, and on the very first ball of the eighth over, Zaman, who made 27 off 26 balls, was trapped in front.\
As a result, Green Shirts were reduced to 51-3 in 8.2 overs.
Afghanistan continued to take wickets and put pressure on Pakistan with economical bowling. Hasan Nawaz was caught after hitting a six in Rashid’s over, whereas wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Haris was cleaned up by Noor Ahmed.
Pakistan tried to break the shackles in the second half of the innings, with Mohammad Nawaz pressing the paddle with a 25-run knock. He hit two sixes in his crucial innings before getting dismissed on the second ball of the final over.
Yet, Pakistan managed to post a below-par score courtesy of fine bowling from Afghanistan.
For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan picked up three wickets, whereas Noor Ahmed and Fazalhaq Farooqi were equally good with two wickets each.
Playing XIs
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Karim Janat, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan (c), Mohammad Nabi, AM Ghazanfar, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi
Pakistan: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Salman Ali Agha (c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Haris (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz
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