Pakistan beat the unbeaten New Zealand in the tournament so far with a scintillating performance tonight at Edgbaston. Pakistan is known to deliver the dominance when dejected, cornered and enter into a very critical position in a tournament. Time and again Pakistan has proved that they might be the team with 100 problems, but mental strength isn’t one.
Pakistan displayed unmitigated ascendancy over the Kiwis today throughout the game. From shattering the top order batsmen early in the game, to showing resilient batting brilliance, Pakistan was dominant.
Pakistan, since its absolute downfall against India has come back stronger than ever. Team captain, Sarfaraz Ahmed has gained respect, love and unconditional support and it has been pleasant to see the stanch, upbeat, chirpy, invested Sarfaraz back in the game. This, all of this, is certainly the difference between team Pakistan prior to their game versus South Africa. The body language has been utmost fearless and the team has found its winning streak.
Tonight’s game displayed some notable highs for the team. Muhammad Amir has been the star of the tournament, but today, Shaheen Afridi stole the limelight with his magnificent length bowling, accurate analysis of the situation and striking with wickets at crucial moments. He was the most economical bowler from Pakistan, bagging 3/28 in his 10 overs with 3 maidens.
Babar Azam, the man of the match for the game tonight scored his prized and a crucial century tonight. He remained not out at 101*. Babar played like a great cricketer who saw his team through after spending time on a very difficult pitch. He proved his metal and played sensible cricket throughout his innings. Haris Sohail brilliantly supported him from the other end, scoring his second consecutive half-century of the tournament. Unfortunately, he lost his wicket to a committed fielding effort from Martin Guptill, who knocked the bails out and Haris was forced to go back to the pavilion with just 2 more runs required to win. Captain Sarfaraz hit the winning run and the electrifying crowd at Edgbaston could not have asked for anything better. It was a flood of green at the ground today with the loudest cheers for Team Pakistan.
A nail biting, heart-fluttering affair comes to an end leaving Pakistani fans around the world jubilant. Pakistan’s prospects for the world cup are still very much alive. With 2 more fixtures to go, the tournament is still very open, very electrifying and definitely worth the money.