All-round Pakistan edge out England to draw series

Sports Wednesday 02/September/2020 11:52 AM
By: Times News Service
All-round Pakistan edge out England to draw series

Manchester: Mohammad Hafeez and debutant Haider Ali both hit half-centuries before Pakistan's bowlers managed to restrict England despite fireworks from Moeen Ali.
Moeen also found success with the ball, bowling Fakhar Zaman with his first ball to give England an early breakthrough. Babar Azam also fell before the end of the Powerplay, bowled by Tom Curran, but 19-year-old Haider Ali ensured the bowlers couldn't get on top.
After hitting his second ball for six, Haider continued to play with freedom and began to build a big partnership with Mohammad Hafeez. Haider brought up his fifty from just 28 balls, becoming the first Pakistan batsman to score a half-century on T20I debut.
Hafeez then took charge, racing to his own half-century from 31 balls before Chris Jordan bowled Haider with an in-swinging yorker to break the partnership, which was worth exactly 100 runs.
The 38-year-old batsman didn't relent however, and he ended the innings unbeaten on 86* from 52 balls with four fours and six sixes as Pakistan posted 190/4.
Shaheen Afridi removed Jonny Bairstow in the first over to get Pakistan's efforts with the ball off to a dream start, and Dawid Malan scored just 7 before Fakhar took an excellent boundary catch to send him back to the changing room.
A mix-up between Tom Banton and Eoin Morgan cost the England captain his wicket, while the young opener made liberal use of the reverse sweep to keep the score moving at a good rate.
Haris Rauf trapped Banton in front in the next over though, with the 21-year-old falling four runs short of what would have been a second fifty of the series.
Moeen Ali then assumed the lead role for England, while Billings looked to rotate the strike before skying a catch off Wahab Riaz. The all-rounder hit Shadab Khan for three sixes in his final over on his way to a 25-ball fifty, before Lewis Gregory managed to find the boundary from consecutive balls.
Another 10 runs from the 18th over left England needing 20 runs from the final two overs, but the experienced Wahab produced a superb over, conceding just three runs as well as scoring a direct hit to run out Jordan and taking a return catch to dismiss Moeen.
Tom Curran kept the game alive all the way to the end, hitting the penultimate delivery over cover for six to leave another maximum needed from the final ball. But he couldn't make contact with Haris Rauf's pinpoint wide yorker, giving Pakistan a 5-run victory and leaving the series drawn 1-1.