ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Pakistan keep semifinal hopes alive with rusty win over Netherlands

Pakistan was again scrappy with the bat but managed to pull out a six-wicket victory over the Netherlands in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 in Perth on Sunday to keep their slim semifinal hopes alive.

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First Published Oct 30, 2022, 4:24 PM IST | Last Updated Oct 30, 2022, 4:24 PM IST

At the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 in Perth on Sunday, Pakistan struggled with the bat once more but still managed to pull out a six-wicket victory over the Netherlands to keep their tenuous semifinal hopes alive.

On a bowlers' friendly Optus Stadium surface, the Dutchmen could not manage Pakistan's elite pace attack and could only muster 91 for 9 in their 20 overs.

One of the batters, Bas de Leede (6), retired hurt after being hit below the eye by a snorter from Haris Rauf.

Even though Pakistan was always going to be able to reach the mark of 92, it still took them 13.5 overs to complete the chase. The ICC's top-ranked T20 batter, Mohammed Rizwan, only managed 49 off 39 balls at an underwhelming strike rate of 125.64.

Also read: ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Bangladesh survive dramatic last over to edge past Zimbabwe by three runs

Pakistan's prospects of staying alive in the tournament were boosted when Bangladesh defeated Zimbabwe in a thrilling match.

As Shaheen Shah Afridi (1/19 in 4 overs) and Naseem Shah (1/11 in 4 overs) strangled the run flow in the Powerplay and the Dutch could never break free, the bowlers deserve all the credit for this victory.

While Shadab Khan, who had the best figures of 3/10, got the benefits of this constant pressure from the pace merchants, Mohammed Wasim (2/15 in 3 overs) was quick at the back end.

For the Dutch, the kind of extreme pace that they faced on the day isn't something they are accustomed to at the Associate level. It was inevitable that they couldn't manage to get on top of the bowling as Powerplay overs yielded only 18 runs. It was the ball hitting the bat rather than another way around.

De Leede got a nasty one from Rauf and was on all fours before he had to be rushed off the field. One saw a considerable swelling under his right eye as he walked off the field.

The short ball also played into the psyche of the batters as Colin Ackermann's run-a-ball 27 was their top score. The only other batter to reach double figures was skipper Scott Edwards (15 off 20 balls).

Such was the domination of the Pakistani pace attack that the Netherlands managed a cumulative total of only five boundaries in 20 overs.

Also read: Pakistan pace great Wasim Akram trolled after revealing cocaine addiction post retirement

While batting, Babar Azam's (4) run-out was unfortunate as he couldn't beat a direct throw from former Proteas spinner Roelof van der Merwe (playing for his country of birth).

At the same time, Fakhar Zaman (20 off 16 balls) smashed three fours before Edwards took a diving catch off seamer Brandon Glover's delivery. But Rizwan completed the chase with minimum fuss.

(With inputs from PTI)

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