If you did not watch the match yesterday (7th Aug), please go watch the highlights or you will regret not screaming your guts out at this nailbiter. Pakistan literally turned the match around in the last over! Here’s how it played out.
Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the toss, electing to bowl first against the Mohammad Nabi led Afghanistan at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Afghanistan scored 129/6 with Ibrahim Zadran emerging as the top scorer having scored 37 runs off 35 balls.
Upon the conclusion of the first innings it seemed to be an easy enough chase for Pakistan, however, multiple turn of events caused it to be a memorable one for the team and for the audience as well. Pakistan chased down the score with four balls to spare, as Shadab Khan was the top scorer with 36 runs, and Iftikhar Ahmed came up to a close second with 30.
Pakistan did undoubtedly win the match, thus securing their spot in the finals of the Asia Cup 2022, but this was a result of pure magic displayed on the field by Naseem Shah, in the final over.
Throughout the match, Pakistan was at an advantage and chances of victory were high, however, in the last over, with 9 wickets down for Pakistan, for the first time throughout the match, Afghanistan had the upper hand, until Naseem Shah stepped in, smashed two brilliant sixes and finished the game off like a superstar. It was literally a case of he, came, he saw and he conquered whilst jaws dropped across the stadium making it a timeless moment to remembered forever.
Admittedly, the two balls were full tosses delivered by Fazalhaq Farooqui who succumbed to the intense pressure. Up until the last over, he had been doing fantastic with his bowling, trapping skipper Babar Azam in the first over itself. However, even with full tosses, it is not easy, even for experienced batsmen to hit two consecutive sixes. The end of the match felt like time had frozen as the last six soared right out of the stadium and the team rejoiced with an imminent boost of adrenaline.
This win landed Pakistan right into the finals which will be held on the 11th of September, where Pakistan will take on Sri Lanka as the two teams battle it out for the cup.
