Buoyed by two half-centuries and a brilliant Shadab Khan knock, Pakistan saw an upturn in fortunes as they posted a respectable 270 runs on the board before being dismissed against South Africa in their International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup 2023 match on Friday.
The 26th One Day International (ODI) match that is being played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat first. Pakistan had a shaky start down to 86 for the loss of three wickets. However, Babar Azam continued his fine form and forged a partnership with Mohammad Rizwan before the latter’s dismissal.
Saud Shakeel also played an important knock of 52 to keep on the aggression from the Pakistani side even as they kept losing wickets to the South African bowling onslaught. Further down the batting line-up, Shadab Khan exploded with a brilliant 43 to push the Pakistani total towards the 300 mark.
South Africa came back strong to sweep the tail-enders to restrict the Men in Green to 270. Tabrez Shamsi was brilliant picking up four wickets, while Marco Jansen picked three wickets. Gerald Coetzee also contributed with two wickets and Lungi Ngidi got one.
South Africa now has to chase down the total keeping caution in the back of their minds to not lose regular wickets. Otherwise, winning the match might prove to be a task too difficult for the Proteas.
