Pakistan thrashed South Africa by seven wickets in the second match at Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium on Saturday to clinch the ODI series 2-1
Chasing a modest 144-run target for victory, Pakistan crossed the finish line with seven wickets in hand and 149 balls to spare.
Saim Ayub stood as the highest scorer for the Green shirts with 77 off 70 balls. He laced with 11 fours and one maximum. Mohammad Rizwan made 32 off 45 balls, hitting three fours and one six. Babar Azam contributed 27 off 32 balls, laced with five boundaries.
Nandre Burger and Bjorn Fortuin picked up one wicket apiece. Babar Azam went back to pavilion after run out. Match committee named Abrar Ahmed Player of the Match for his outstanding performance with the ball. Similarly, they named Quinton de Kock Player of the Series for his consistent performance with the bat. He scored 239 runs in three matches at an average of 119.5.
South Africa vs Pakistan Scorecard:
After winning the toss and electing to bat first, South Africa were bundled out for 143 in 37.5 overs.
Quinton de Kock (53) and Lhuan-dre Pretorius (39) provided a good start with a solid 72-run opening partnership. After that, Proteas kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were bowled out for 143.
Skipper Matthew Breetzke and Nqabayomzi Peter contributed 16 runs each. No other batter could enter the double figures. Abrar Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers with his career-best figure of 4/27 in 10 overs. Skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Nawaz and Salman Ali Agha bagged two wickets each.
Pakistan won the ODI series opener with two wickets, while the visitors fought back strongly by winning the second match with a convincing eight-wicket margin to level the series 1-1.
South Africa Playing XI: Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Matthew Breetzke (capt), Rubin Hermann, Donovan Ferreira, Corbin Bosch, Bjorn Fortuin, Nandre Burger, Nqabayomzi Peter, Lungi Ngidi
Pakistan Playing XI: Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Mohammed Rizwan (wk), Salman Agha. Hussain Talat, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf. Shaheen Shah Afridi (capt), Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed
