ISLAMABAD: Aiden Markram splendid 91 runs guided South Africa to one wicket win against Pakistan in the ICC contest played at Chennai, India on Friday. Pakistani pacers tried hard in the end and made the game quite excited but at the end South Africa won the match. This was the fourth consecutive loss of Pakistan in the world cup, taking the side almost out of the run for the final four in the mega event. Pakistani pacers tried hard and took wickets with interval but the moderate total and super inning of Markram (91), and at the end, the last pair took the game away from Pakistan.
South Africa overcome Pakistan by the barest of margins to take an absolute #CWC23 cliffhanger in Chennai 🔥#PAKvSA 📝: https://t.co/pnYCNcuisM pic.twitter.com/Lazz5NlyWz
— ICC (@ICC) October 27, 2023
Chasing a target of 271 to win South African opener Quinton de Kock took a flying start for his side and grabbed 11 runs per over in the first three overs. However, in the 4th over Shaheen strike to dismiss de Kock on 24 runs. In the 10th over Muhammad Waseem also removed the skipper Bavuma on 28. Despite falling of wickets South Africa maintained the high run-rate that took Pakistan under pressure. In the first 14 overs they managed to reach the first 100 runs.
In the 19th over when the score reached 121, Usama Mir got the wicket of Van der Dussen on 21. He was followed by the dismissal of the in-form Klaasen in the 22nd over. Waseem got him out on just 12 runs. At the stage it seemed Pakistan came back into the game. However, Miller and Markram didn’t let Pakistan to restrict them further.
Markram completed his half century. He along with Miller contributed 70 crucial run partnership for the team. In the 34th over Shaheen managed to dismiss Miller on 29, when the total reached 206. He was replaced by Jansen who added some quick runs to the score board and made the chase further easy. In the 37th over Haris Rauf managed to remove Jansen on 20, who faced just 14 balls. At the stage South Africa required just 36 runs in 38 balls which seemed not a big deal as Markram was on the crease with 86 not out. However, after reaching near to the target, Babar introduced Usama Mir for the 41st over, who managed to get rid of Markram on 91. However, it seemed too late as South Africa were required 21 runs of 58 balls with 3 wickets in hand and Pakistan was waiting only for a miracle.
And something excited happened in the next over When Shaheen dismissed Coatzee in the very first ball of the next over. Despite required just 21 runs Pakistani bowlers brought suspense to the game as they were required 2 wickets to win. After 8 down South Africa came under pressure for the first time in the game where Shaheen Afridi and Usama Mir bowled two good overs, despite South Africans were very near to the target. Meanwhile Shaheen, Waseem, Usama and Haris Bowled well. In the 44th over Haris Rauf caught a stunning catch on his own ball to take the game into a nail-biting one. At the stage South Africa needed 8 runs of 26 balls while Pakistan required just 1 wicket. After 47 overs South Africa were required 5 runs on 18 balls while Pakistan required 1 wicket to win. In the 48TH OVER South Africa won the match by 1 wicket.
From Pakistan Shaheen Shah Afridi was the most successful bowler taking 3 wickets while conceding 45 runs in his 10 over spill. Muhammad Waseem, Usama Mir and Haris Rauf took two wicket each.
Pakistan Batting
Earlier winning the toss, Pakistan decided to bat first on a flat pitch, having a bit seem for both spinners and pacers. Taking the pressure of the match, both the openers, Abdullah Shafiq and Imam-ul-Haq, took a cautious start. However, in the fifth over, when the score reached 20, Abdullah Shafiq got out on the mid-wicket boundary while playing a short pitch ball to Jansen. Abdullah scored just 9 runs.
In his next over, Jansen removed the second opener, Imam-ul-Haq on 12, taking Pakistan under pressure. At the stage, Pakistan were 38 for 2 in 6.3 overs. After the dismissals of the openers, Muhammad Rizwan and Babar Azam took the innings ahead. Rizwan also made some aggression to keep Proteas bowlers under pressure and maintain the run rate above 5 and a half. He seemed in good knows, but in the 16th over, he was removed by Coetzee on 31.
Rizwan was replaced by Iftikhar and, after taking a steady start, accelerated his innings later, but in the 26th over, he was removed by Shamsi on 21 when the total reached 129. After Iftikhar and Rizwan, South African bowlers dominated once again.
Meanwhile, Babar Azam completed his half-century; however, again Pakistan suffered another blow in a crunch time when the skipper was removed by Shamsi on 50. At the stage, Pakistan was 141 for 5 in 27.5 overs. Babar was replaced by Shadab, who joined Saud Shakil on the crease.
Despite losing 5 wickets on 141 in the middle of the game and being under pressure, Shadab and Saud played in a slightly different strategy, and both started attacking against the Proteas bowlers. During their stay on the crease, they both scored over 7 runs per over and contributed 84 crucial runs for the team to take their side to a bit decent position. Shadab scored 43 on 36 balls, including 2 sixes and 3 boundaries, while smashed a half-century of 52 on 52 deliveries. However, once again, one after the other two batters got out on a crunch time that made the run rate a bit slower.
At the stage, Pakistan were 240 for 7 in 42.1 overs. Meanwhile, Muhammad Nawaz added some crucial runs along with the tail. In the 45th over, Shamsi got his 4th wicket while dismissing Shaheen Shah on just runs. Muhammad Nawaz tried to accelerate the inning but was removed by Jansen on 24, when the total reached 268 for 9 in 45.5 overs. Later, Pakistan were all out on 270 in 46.4 overs with 20 balls to spare.
From South Africa, Tabraiz Shamsi was the most successful bowler, taking 4 wickets while conceding 60 runs in his 10 over spill. Jansen got three wickets, Ngidi took one and Coetzee grabbed two wickets.
Pakistan Team
Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan †, Iftikhar Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim and Haris Rauf
South Africa Team
Temba Bavuma (c), Quinton de Kock †, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi and Lungi Ngidi
