Afghanistan vs Pakistan at ICC Academy 2
Pakistan restrict Afghanistan to a paltry 52 runs and win by four wickets
Pakistan bowled out Afghanistan for 52 runs in their first match at the ICC Academy Ground 2 and recorded a four-wicket victory. Ahmed Khan bagged three wickets for 21 runs, well backed by Zeeshan Zameer (2 for 12) and Awais Ali (2 for 9), to restrict Afghanistan in 23.1 overs. Afghanistan fought back valiantly and took six wickets before Pakistan won with 200 balls to spare.
Afghanistan won the toss and elected to bat but got off to a shaky start. They lost their opener Suliman Arabzai to the fifth ball of the first over, getting run out for a duck. One-drop batsman Bilal Sayedi too quickly followed, caught behind by wicketkeeper Haseebullah Khan off Zeeshan Zameer for a duck. Afghanistan skipper and opener Suliman Saif lasted just 19 balls to score four runs and fell leg before to Ahmed Khan. Soon Ahmed Khan also trapped Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai leg before for a duck. When Izharulhaq Naveed too fell caught by Irfan Khan off Ahmed Khan, half of the Afghanistan side were back in the pavilion for 12 runs in 5.6 overs.
Nangeyalia Khan and Mohammad Ishaq tried hard to lift their team out of trouble. They put on 27 runs for the sixth wicket from 59 deliveries before Nangeyalia Khan got bowled by Pakistan skipper Qasim Akram for 15. One run later, Awais Ali dismissed Izharullahq Naveed for 1. Ishaq, who withstood 36 deliveries to score nine runs, became another Awais Ali victim. Ali Asfand and Zameer took the last two wickets to bowl out Afghanistan for a paltry 52 runs in 23.1 overs.
Chasing the moderate total, Pakistan lost their opener Abdul Wahid for nine runs in the fifth over to Bilal Sami. One-drop Mohammad Shahzad too got out to Sami for a duck. Two down for 18 in seven overs, opener Maaz Ahmad Sadaqat and Haseebullah played cautiously and steadied the innings. They put on 24 runs in 32 balls before Haseebullah got clean bowled by Noor Ahmad Lakhanwal for 11. Lakanwal also dismissed Qasim Akram for a duck. Pakistan slipped to 48 for 5 when Izharullahq Naveed trapped Mohammad Irfan Khan leg before for 4. Lakanwala also clean bowled Rizwan Mehmood Syed for 2 before opener Sadaqat took the team to the target remaining unbeaten on 14.
Commenting on the victory Pakistan skipper Qasim Akram said: “We are very happy to get off to a winning start. We bowled really well although the finish was not what we wanted. We will work harder on our batting. We lost some quick wickets due to some rushed shots. Overall we are happy with our performance.”
Player of the match Awais Ali is delighted at his performance. “Our plan was to end the Afghanistan innings quickly. I am delighted to have contributed to it. Our objective was to contain the runs and I am happy I could pick some quick wickets too. I am also thrilled at being the first Player of the Match of this tournament.”
Afghanistan skipper Sulaiman Safi attributed his team’s defeat to the insufficient score. “Being the first match, our batsmen struggled to get used to the conditions. If we had at least 100 runs we are confident we would have pulled off a victory. We have learned a lot from this match and will come back stronger in the next.”
Afghanistan v Pakistan at ICC Academy 2
PAKISTAN WON BY FOUR WICKETS
Afghanistan won the toss and chose to bat
Afghanistan: 52 all out off 23.1 overs (A.Khan 3-21)
Pakistan: 53 for 6 off 16.4 overs (NA.Lakanwal 3-20)
Man of the Match: Awais Ali (Pakistan)
http://asiancricket.org/index.php/tournaments/acc-u19-asia-cup-2021/3502
