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RAWALPINDI: Babar Azam’s gutsy half-century, backed by Usman Tariq’s four-wicket haul, propelled Pakistan to a 69-run victory over Zimbabwe in the fourth fixture of the T20I tri-series.
Set a daunting 196-run target, Zimbabwe were bowled out for 126 in 19 overs.
Naseem Shah and Mohammad Wasim inflicted a poor start on Zimbabwe as they were reduced to 25-3 in 3.3 overs.
Brian Bennett managed to score nine while Tadiwanashe Marumani went back after scoring four. Veteran batter Brendan Taylor also got out after scoring only eight.
With this, skipper Sikandar Raza arrived at the crease and tried to put the Chevrons’ chase back on track with a 34-run partnership alongside Ryan Burl.
The scorecard read 59 when Raza (23) was caught off Mohammad Nawaz’s bowling, a wicket that sparked a collapse that the visitors could not recover from it.
Usman Tariq further piled on misery with a hat-trick in the 10th over, which left them reeling at 60-7. However, it was Ryan Burl’s spirited knock off 67* from 49 balls with the aid of eight fours and two sixes that helped them cross 100-run mark.
For Pakistan, Usman Tariq stood out with four wickets to his name, whereas Mohammad Nawaz scalped two in his four overs.
Earlier, Sahibzada Farhan and Babar Azam’s half-centuries and Fakhar Zaman’s cameo powered Pakistan to a strong total.
Batting first here under lights at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Pakistan piled up 195-5 in their 20 overs.
Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan added 29 for the opening wicket in 2.3 overs. The former was caught after scoring 13 from 8 with the help of two sixes.
Following the early wicket, Sahibzada Farhan and Babar Azam forged a 103-run stand as both players flexed their muscles at the back end of the innings.
Farhan, who remained the core aggressor, made 63 from 41 balls, laced with three maximums and four boundaries, while Babar played the second fiddle and hit two sixes and seven fours on his way to 74 from 52 balls.
Sahibzada departed in the 15th over when Pakistan were cruising at 132 in 15.2 overs.
Nonetheless, it was Fakhar Zaman’s cameo in the last over that took Pakistan near the 200-run mark. The southpaw, who came down the order, hit three sixes in his 27 from just 10 balls.
For Zimbabwe, Sikandar Raza picked up two wickets in his quota of four overs.
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