Ashraf and Mirza Shine as Pakistan Dominates South Africa in 2nd T20 Victory

Basio badr

ago 10 hours

Ashraf and Mirza Shine as Pakistan Dominates South Africa in 2nd T20 Victory

In a commanding performance, Pakistan secured a decisive victory over South Africa in the second T20 match, leveling the series at 1-1. The match took place following South Africa’s earlier win by 55 runs in Rawalpindi. The final encounter of the series is set to be held in Lahore.

Ashraf and Mirza Shine for Pakistan

Fast bowlers Muhammad Ashraf and Mohammad Mirza were the standout players for Pakistan. Ashraf achieved figures of 4 wickets for 23 runs, while Mirza took 3 wickets for just 14 runs. Their exceptional bowling dismissed South Africa for a mere 110 runs.

Key Performances

Pakistan’s opener, Saim Ayub, contributed significantly to the chase with an unbeaten score of 71 runs. His explosive 38-ball innings included six fours and five sixes. Ayub finished the match by hitting a six off Donovan Ferreira.

Saim Ayub: 71* runs off 38 balls
Babar Azam: Not out on 11 runs
Sahibzada Farhan: Scored 28 runs with three sixes

Match Overview

Pakistan raced to 54 runs in just the seventh over. Unfortunately, Farhan was dismissed leg-before by Corbin Bosch. Babar Azam’s performance also marked a significant milestone, as he became the highest run-scorer in T20 internationals, surpassing India’s Rohit Sharma. Azam now has 4,234 runs in 130 matches.

Comments from the Captains

Pakistan captain Salman Agha expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance, stating, “I am happy with this win. They outplayed us in the last game, but today we bowled well up front.” He emphasized the need for the team to maintain this momentum in the series decider.

Conversely, South African skipper Donovan Ferreira acknowledged his team’s batting shortcomings. “We didn’t give our bowlers enough to defend,” Ferreira remarked. “We need to put this behind and come strong tomorrow.”

Bowling Highlights

South Africa’s batting suffered early setbacks, with Mirza dismissing Reeza Hendricks on just the second delivery of the innings. Naseem Shah also contributed by taking the wicket of Quinton de Kock for seven runs. The pair of Dewald Brevis and Ferreira managed to add 26 runs, which was the highest partnership of the innings before Ashraf’s spell of four wickets extinguished any remaining hope for South Africa.