Q Mobil Cup t20 series…Khan’s dream debut and Malik’s unbeaten 38 see Pakistan to 1-nil lead

Mar 27, 2017 Sports

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By Sean Devers in Barbados
In association with Stag Beer &
Vnet Communications

Pakistan took a 1-nil lead in the four match T20 series against West Indies with an easy six-wicket win in the first match here at the Kensington Oval before a less than capacity crowd yesterday.

A 37-run last wicket stand between Skipper Carlos Braithwaite and ODI and Test Captain Jason Holder rallied West Indies, who left out Veerasammy Permaul, from 49-6 to 111-8 off their 20 overs
Braithwaite, who took 14 balls for his first 14 with just a single four, finished unbeaten on 38 from 27 balls with two fours and a couple of sixes, while Holder’s 14 lasted 12 balls and included two overs. Chadwick Walton (18) was the only other batsman to reach 15 as 18-year-old leg-spinner Shadab Khan had an auspicious debut taking 3-7 from his four overs.
Pakistan in reply reached 115-4 off 17.1 overs with Shoaib Malik finishing on an undefeated 38 from 29 balls with three fours and a six, while Babar Azam made a run-a-ball 30 with three fours and opener Kamran Akmal supported with 22 from 17 balls with two fours and a six.
Holder had 2-27 for the West Indies who now head to Trinidad for the second game on March 30.
Pakistan, on a pitch which was covered over the last three days with a rubberized mat, opened the bowling with two spinners and after Imad Wasim’ opening over cost two runs, Evan Lewis belted Mohammed Hafeez for six over mid-wicket before Lewis (10) was caught short of his ground by a bullet-like direct throw at the non-striker’s end with the score on 13-1 in the second over.
Marlon Samuels joined Chadwick Walton who cut Wasim confidently for four before pacer Sohail Tanvir replaced Hafiz and Walton whipped him for six over straight mid-wicket.
Samuels got going by flicking Hassan Ali for four and the fair size crowd waved Bajan, Guyanese and West Indian flags but their joy was short lived when Samuels (7) was trapped in front by Wasim to leave West Indies on 35-2.
It was soon 38-4 when Khan had Walton (18) LBW and bowled Lendl Simmons (1) who played an atrocious sweep at a googlie and dragged it onto his stumps, a run later in the eighth over.
The West Indies batsmen seemed in suicidal mood as Sunil Narine (1), promoted in the order, lofted Khan to long-on in his second over to leave the score 42-5 and the leg spinner was having a dream start to his t20 International career and was virtually unplayable, conceding just seven singles in his four-over spell.
Rovman Powell (4) stuck Ali for four but was LBW to the 23-year-old pacer next ball to leave the Windies in dire straits on 49-6 as the horrendous exhibition of batting continued unabated.
Pollard, very popular here, was joined by Skipper Carlos Braithwaite, whose claim to fame was his four consecutive sixes in t20 World Cup final. The two biggest hitters in the team struggled to find the boundary with Pollard hitting just a single four in his first 27 balls which yielded 14 runs, while Braithwaite faced 14 balls with just a single boundary in his first 14 runs.
Pollard pulled Wahab Riaz to Wasim on the square leg boundary and it was 74-7 in 17.1 overs before Braithwaite broke the shackles by hitting his first six and followed it up with a brutal punch which sped all along the ground past extra cover for four and at the end of the 18th over West Indies were 84-7.
Holder clipped Ali off his hip for four, while Braithwaite began the 19th over with a four and two sixes off Riaz to post the 100.
The final over from Tanvir cost just six runs although Holder was dropped at deep mid-wicket by Ali, who deflected the ball for four before he was taken at mid-off from the final ball.
Akmal cut Holder behind point in the first over before smashing Narine to the point boundary as Pakistan raced to 18 from three overs in steaming heat.
Ahmed Shehzad chipped into Holder and pugnaciously pulled him off the front foot like a scud missile to the mid-wicket boundary before he played loosely at one that left him and was caught behind by Walton at 25-1, while Babar Azam finished off the over by stroking the ball to the ropes.
Samuel Badree was lofted for six over long-off by Akmal before the right-hander swept a full toss to mid-wicket and after six overs Pakistan were 40-2.
Braithwaite struck in his second over when Hafeez (5) skied a ball and the bowler and Keeper crashed into each other but Braithwaite, who was knocked to the ground, held onto the ball to leave the score on 49-3 in ninth over.
Malik delicately late cut Narine for four and after 10 overs the visitors were 56-3 with Azam and Malik looking well set and at halfway stage half of required runs were already made.
Azam continued to bat fluently and struck some gorgeous boundaries before he was removed by Holder in the 15th over at 95-4.
Malik clobbered Holder over mid-wicket for six and caressed him to the cover boundary to give Pakistan a six wicket win and a 1-nill lead in the four match series.

Scoreboard
WEST INDIES
E Lewis run out                                                                             10
+C Walton lbw b Shadab Khan                                               18
M Samuels lbw b Imad Wasim                                                  7
L Simmons b Shadab Khan                                                          1
K Pollard c Imad Wasim b Wahab Riaz                              14
S Narine c Imad Wasim b Shadab Khan                                1
R Powell lbw b Hasan Ali                                                              5
*C Brathwaite not out                                                                  34
J Holder c Mohammad Hafeez b Sohail Tanvir               14
Extras (lb3, w3, nb1)                                                                     7
TOTAL (8 wkts, 20 overs)                                  111

Did not bat: S Badree, K Williams

Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-35, 3-37 4-38,
5-42, 6-49, 7-74, 8-111.

Bowling: Imad Wasim 3-0-12-1,
Mohammed Hafeez 1-0-8-0,
Sohail Tanvir 4-0-21-1 (w1, nb1),
Hasan Ali 4-0-25-1, Shadab Khan 4-0-7-3,
Wahab Riaz 4-0-35-1 (w2).

PAKISTAN
Kamran Akmal c Lewis b Badree                              22
Ahmed Shehzad c wkp Walton b Holder               13
Babar Azam c Powell b Holder                                  29
Mohammad Hafeez c & b Brathwaite                        5
Shoaib Malik not out                                                     38
*+Sarfraz Ahmed not out                                               4
Extras (w3, nb1)                                                                  4
TOTAL (4 wkts, 17.1 overs)                       115

Did not bat: Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan,
Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali

Fall of wickets: 1-25, 2-40, 3-49, 4-95.

Bowling: Badree 4-0-24-1 (w1), Holder 3.1-0-27-2,
Narine 4-0-22-0, Brathwaite 3-0-18-1,
Williams 2-0-14-0 (w1, nb1), Pollard 1-0-10-0.

Result: Pakistan won by six wickets.
Position: Pakistan lead the four-match series 1-0.
Man-of-the-Match: Shadab Khan.
Toss: Pakistan.
Umpires: G Brathwaite, J Wilson; TV — N Duguid.

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