Pakistan’s highest ever successful chase against India in T20s
Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz stunned India in the second round of the Asia Cup at Dubai International Stadium with his amazing 42 runs of 20 balls as Pakistan won the match by 5 wickets. With Pakistan top-scorer Mohammad Rizwan (71) batting like a prop at the other end, Nawaz begins a brutal counterattack as he hit six boundaries and two sixes along with the wicket he has got to outclass India. This is Pakistan’s highest-ever successful chase against India in the T20s.
Earlier, Babar Azam-led Pakistan won the toss and let the opposition bat first. But it backfired India straightaway as the openers, Rohit Sharma (28 off 16) and K.L. Rahul (28 off 20) again failed to last long in the crease even though they provided India with a flying start. Both wreaked havoc inside the powerplay. The Pakistan spinners made a strong comeback from the beginning of the game as they pick wickets at regular intervals.
Former skipper Virat Kohli had a prolonged stay at the crease as he scored 66 runs off 44 balls. All others just came in, hit a couple of shots, and went back. The young and vibrant Rishabh Pant failed to make a big impact as he got dismissed by Shadab Khan after scoring a 12.
Suryakumar Yadav was yielded to Mohammad Nawaz in the 10th over as he has only scored 13 runs. All-rounder Hardik Pandya went out in duck in the second ball itself. Deepak Hooda scored 16 runs off 14 balls. Pakistan pacers kept their speed intact as India managed to score just 181 runs.
Coming back to the chase, Pakistan had a good start with the bat as the opener Mohammad Rizwan stayed long for Pakistan with a total of 71 runs off 51 balls. Pakistan once again lost the wicket of the skipper, Babar Azam, earlier in the 4th over and it was the leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi who got the wicket of Babar. Fakhar Zaman also scored a poor 18-ball 15 runs before being dismissed by Chahal.
It was Mohammad Nawaz who was the pillar of Pakistan with an amazing knock-out of 42 runs of 20 balls. Chasing 182 runs, the left-arm spinner Nawas came early to bat at No.4 and that entirely changed the fate of the match. He has abolished India’s middle over trump-card Chahal as he has given 1/43 in his four overs. But Nawaz was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the 16th over. Mohammad Rizwan’s outstanding 71-run knock was also ended in the 17th over.
When Pakistan is in need of 26 runs in 12 balls, it was Khushdil Shah and Asif Ali who got stuck into India’s most experienced Bhuvneshwar Kumar. But in the end overs, the duo batted very well as they passed the finishing line with Pakistan scoring 182/5 in 19.5 overs.
Only Ravi Bishnoi bowled well for India on the whole and the slow and passive fielding cost them the game. After the wicket of Babar, the spinners couldn’t really control the middle phase. All-rounder Hardik Pandya also had an off day that made it more difficult for India. The pace bowling has been a weakness for India throughout this game.
Team India made three big changes to the playing XI from the last game as Hardik Pandya. Deepak Hooda and Ravi Bishnoi were replaced instead of Dinesh Karthik, Ravindra Jadeja, and Avesh Khan. Karthik and Jadeja’s absence were visible on the field throughout the game in fielding and batting.
Chasing a big total on a difficult pitch, Pakistan needed a good start with the bowl. But it was the unexpected move to send Mohammad Nawaz up the order that had a positive impact on the game. Rizwan and Nawaz put on a 73-run stand for Pakistan in the crucial stage. With his brilliant all-round display, Nawaz was awarded the player-of-the-match.
Another thrilling match came to an end with a remarkable turnaround from Pakistan. Just a week ago, they lost a game to India and now they bounced back in the same way.
Fantasy Cricket League – Everything is Cricket Here!
