Istafa Ali
It was Bangladesh last night who became victims of unbeaten streak of Pakistan cricket team in ODIs. In the first match of Super four round of 2023 Asia Cup Pakistan won convincingly against Bangladesh by 7 wickets. Gaddafi stadium hosted the match where the Lahore crowd produced an electrifying atmosphere.
Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat on a pitch where the ball was expected to come on the bat. Yet again, the Pakistani pacers did what they are known for, demolishing opposition’s top order. Bangladesh lost their first 4 wickets only at a total of 47 runs on the board. Pakistani right hander pacer Haris Rauf took his 50th ODI wicket when he took the wicket of Mohammad Naim in his first over. It took 27 matches for Rauf to reach the milestone. Bangladeshi batters put on a partnership of 100 runs for the 5th wicket. But the Bangladeshi batters couldn’t resist Pakistani bowling for a long time and the whole team got out for on a total of 193 in the 39th over. Mushfiqur Rahim was the top scorer with 64 runs for Bangladesh while Shakib Al Hasan also succeeded in scoring a half century. For Pakistan, yet again the pacers did the trick by taking 9 of the 10 wickets. Haris Rauf ended with four wickets and Naseem Shah dismissed 3 batters in his spell.
In reply Pakistani batters didn’t find any trouble in chasing down the total. In form Imam ul Haq scored a superb 78 of 84 balls, Mohammad Rizwan ended with 63 not out. Rizwan along with Salman Agha completed the target in 39.3 overs.
Heartbreak for AFG as SL win by 2 Runs and Qualify for Super 4s
The Pakistani Cricket team is carrying a great form in this calendar year. The green shirts are looking very serious contenders to lift the Asia Cup- and the world cup. Pakistan will play their second match of Super 4 with India on Sunday. Pakistan are in a comfortable position to qualify for the final of the Asia Cup with the win having a positive net run rate.
