Tag: PAK vs SA

LAHORE: Pakistan T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha heaped high praise on Saim Ayub and Salman Mirza, who played vital roles in his side’s nine-wicket win over South Africa.

Pakistan T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha heaped praise on Saim Ayub and Salman Mirza, who played vital roles in his side’s nine-wicket win over South Africa.

Green Shirts defeated South Africa in the second T20I and levelled the three-match T20I series 1-1.

Speaking in the post-match presentation, Salman recalled the opening T20I and expressed confidence in the series decider.

The final T20I will be played tomorrow at the same venue.

Catch Pakistan vs South Africa news updates here!

“They outplayed us in the previous game, and we did that today. It’s beautifully set up now, and hopefully, we’ll have a cracker in the final,” he remarked.

He praised Salman Mirza, saying that the left-arm pacer has the hunger and is learning new things every day.

“We bowled really well up front. When you bowl that well early on, you’re always going to win the game. Salman [Mirza] is working very hard and learning new things every day,” said Salman.

Salman, who bagged the player of the match award, was included in place of Shaheen Afridi, who was given rest ahead of the ODI series.

The left-arm pacer took three wickets in his quota of four overs and gave away only 14 runs. His wickets upfront broke South Africa’s batting lineup, never allowing them to post a threatening total.

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The skipper also mentioned Saim Ayub, who made a brisk 71* off just 38 balls, which helped Pakistan finish the match inside 13 overs.

“He started as a backup option, but he’s becoming a frontline bowler now. Naseem bowled really well, and I’m very happy for him. Saim is someone who can play for the next ten years and become the player we all want him to be,” the skipper concluded.

READ: Salman Mirza reflects on match-winning spell against South Africa

LAHORE: Pakistan ace batter Babar Azam shattered former India captain Rohit Sharma’s record to become the highest run scorer in T20I cricket.

The 31-year-old shattered the record during the second T20I against South Africa here at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

Before coming into this fixture, the right-handed batter required nine runs to surpass Rohit Sharma and become the highest run-scorer in the shorter format.

Babar opened his account with a majestic cover drive in front of his home crowd that erupted in loud cheers as he arrived on the crease.

He achieved the feat on the first ball of the 11th over with a single off Donovan Ferreira’s bowling. With this single, he now sits in pole position ahead of Sharma and Virat Kohli, who have already retired from this format.

Most runs in men’s T20Is

Babar Azam 4234 in 130 matches
Rohit Sharma – 4231 in `159 matches
Virat Kohli – 4188 in 125 matches
Jos Buttler – 3869 in 144 matches

Opting to bat first, South Africa displayed a shambolic batting display and were folded for a mere 110 in 19.2 overs.

The architects of the rattling South Africa batting lineup were Pakistan pacers Faheem Ashraf and Salman Mirza.

Mirza’s opening burst of three wickets tore through the Proteas top-order while Faheem’s four-wicket haul ensured that the visitors didn’t post an imposing total.

Playing XIs

South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Dewald Brevis, Matthew Breetzke, Donovan Ferreira (c), George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Nandre Burger, Ottneil Baartman, Lungi Ngidi

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Salman Agha(c), Usman Khan(w), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed

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LAHORE: Saim Ayub’s sparkling half-century and a clinical bowling performance helped Pakistan rout South Africa in the second T20I here under lights at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday.

Pakistan chased down a mere 111-run target in only 13.1 overs on the loss of just one wicket.

Saim Ayub starred with the bat, scoring a brisk 71* off just 38 balls. The southpaw hit five sixes and half a dozen fours in his knock.

In pursuit of the target, Sahizbada Farhan and Saim Ayub provided a 54-run start in only 6.4 overs. Farhan departed after hitting three sixes in his 28 from 23 balls.

Following the wicket, Babar Azam arrived at the crease in front of his home crowd and opened his account with an elegant cover drive. On the contrary, Saim continued on his merry way and reached his half-century.

On the first ball of the 11th over, Babar reached a major T20I milestone and surpassed Rohit Sharma to become the highest run scorer in T20Is.

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He remained unbeaten with 11* from 18 balls, and Saim finished the match with a six to level the three-match series 1-1.

For South Africa, there was nothing much in the bowling like batting as Corbin Bosch remained the solitary wicket taker.

Earlier, Salman Mirza’s devastating three-wicket spell, coupled with Faheem Ashraf’s four-wicket haul, helped Pakistan skittle South Africa for a modest total.

Put into bat first, South Africa were bowled out for a mere 110 in 19.2 overs.

Replacing Shaheen Afridi in the lineup, Salman Mirza wreaked havoc with the new ball and tore through South Africa’s top order. The left-armer knocked out the previous match’s half-century Reeza Hendricks for a duck on the second ball of the match.

Naseem Shah from the other end also supported him well and removed Quinton de Kock for seven. As a result, the visitors were reduced to 12-2 in two overs.

Salman continued with his outstanding bowling and sent back Tony de Zorzi (7), in the third over and Matthew Breetzke (5) in the fourth to leave the Proteas reeling at 23-4.

The early wickets never allowed South Africa to recover, despite a brief counterattack from top scorer Dewald Brevis. He made 25 from 16 before getting caught on Faheem Ashraf’s bowling. The right-hander hit three sixes in his eye-catching knock.

Catch Pakistan vs South Africa news updates here!

The right-hander remained the only silver lining in a shambolic batting display, which folded their innings before 20 overs.

Salman Mirza returned with excellent figures of 3-14 in four overs, while Faheem Ashraf, who did not bowl in the opening match, scalped four wickets in 3.2 overs while giving away 23.

Playing XIs

South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Dewald Brevis, Matthew Breetzke, Donovan Ferreira (c), George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Nandre Burger, Ottneil Baartman, Lungi Ngidi

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Salman Agha(c), Usman Khan(w), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed

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LAHORE: Pakistan have won the toss and decided to bowl first against South Africa in the second T20I here under lights at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday.

Head to Head

Both teams have met 25 times in the shorter format, with South Africa just edging ahead with 13 wins.

Matches 13: Pakistan 12, South Africa 13

Playing XIs

South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Dewald Brevis, Matthew Breetzke, Donovan Ferreira (c), George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Nandre Burger, Ottneil Baartman, Lungi Ngidi

Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Salman Agha(c), Usman Khan(w), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Naseem Shah, Salman Mirza, Abrar Ahmed

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DUBAI: Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz has made a notable rise, entering the top ten of the latest ICC Men’s T20I Rankings released on Wednesday.

The left-handed spinner climbed eight spots to secure the sixth position among the world’s best all-rounders.

The rise comes on the back of Nawaz’s impressive all-round display in the first T20I against South Africa in Rawalpindi, where he claimed three wickets and smashed 36 off just 20 deliveries.

Despite Pakistan’s 55-run loss, the 31-year-old’s individual performance stood out as one of the few positives.

Meanwhile, young left-hander Saim Ayub continues to lead the ICC Men’s T20I All-Rounder Rankings with 262 rating points, maintaining his position ahead of India’s Hardik Pandya and Afghanistan’s Mohammad Nabi.

In the T20I batters’ list, Sahibzada Farhan climbed one place to 11th with 670 rating points, consolidating his position as Pakistan’s top-ranked T20I batter.

Mohammad Rizwan also rose one spot to 40th, while Babar Azam retained his 39th position.

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Among bowlers, Abrar Ahmed slipped one place to eighth, while Shaheen Shah Afridi dropped two places to 16th.

Sufiyan Muqeem and Haris Rauf also slid down to 19th and 34th, respectively. Nawaz, however, continued his upward trend, gaining six places to reach 33rd.

In ODIs, there were minor shifts in the performance of several Pakistani players.

Mohammad Rizwan climbed one spot to 24th in the batting rankings, followed by Imam-ul-Haq at 40th and Saim Ayub at 53rd. Salman Ali Agha, however, dropped to 39th.

Among ODI bowlers, Shaheen Afridi moved up to 14th, while Abrar Ahmed and Naseem Shah gained one place each to sit at 38th and 43rd, respectively. Mohammad Nawaz slipped three spots to 72nd.

In the all-rounders’ category, Salman Ali Agha climbed to 19th, while Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah held steady at 27th and 36th. Haris Rauf and Saim Ayub both advanced to jointly occupy the 55th position.

READ: Rohit Sharma becomes No.1 ODI batter for the first time

Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez did not hold back after the national team’s 55-run defeat to South Africa in the opening T20I at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

Hafeez criticised the T20I team, stating that the issue was not the pitch but the quality of cricket being played.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Hafeez drew a sharp comparison between the two sides, hinting that Pakistan’s struggles were rooted in execution and consistency rather than surface conditions.

“Nothing wrong with Pindi pitch, but the obvious difference is the standard of cricket. #PAKvSA. International league vs International team,” Hafeez posted.

His remark came after South Africa dominated Pakistan in all departments, led by Corbin Bosch’s fiery spell and Reeza Hendricks’s composed half-century.

Batting first, the visitors posted 194 for 7, with Hendricks anchoring the innings with 60 off 40 balls, laced with five boundaries and a six.

George Linde chipped in with a brisk 36 from 22 deliveries, while Tony de Zorzi (33) and Quinton de Kock (23) added valuable contributions.

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Mohammad Nawaz stood out with the ball for Pakistan, claiming three wickets for just 26 runs, while Saim Ayub picked up two.

Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, and Abrar Ahmed took one apiece.

In response, Pakistan faltered early and never recovered. Saim Ayub top-scored with 37 off 28 balls, hitting four sixes, while Nawaz provided late resistance with a 20-ball 36.

Sahibzada Farhan made 24 off 19, but none of the top-order batters could anchor the innings.

Babar Azam’s much-anticipated T20I comeback ended abruptly, as the former captain fell for a second-ball duck to Bosch in the sixth over.

Bosch was the pick of the bowlers for South Africa with 4 for 24, while George Linde and Williams added three and two wickets respectively, sealing a commanding win for the visitors and a 1-0 lead in the series.

READ: Babar Azam bags unwanted record with duck against South Africa

RAWALPINDI: Top-order batter Babar Azam has equalled former captain Shahid Afridi’s unwanted record for the most ducks in T20Is for Pakistan during the first T20I against South Africa.

On his return to the limited-overs side after a year here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Babar could not extend his stay at the crease and was caught without scoring.

After being dismissed for nought, the right-hander moved up the list of Pakistani batters with the most ducks in T20Is.

Catch Pakistan vs South Africa news updates here!

Currently, Umar Akmal is at the top of the list with batters who have recorded the most ducks, while Saim Ayub is in second spot.

Most Ducks for Pakistan in T20I Cricket:

Umar Akmal: 10
Saim Ayub: 9
Babar Azam: 8
Shahid Afridi: 8
Kamran Akmal: 7
Mohammad Hafeez: 7

For context, South Africa defeated Pakistan by 55 runs in the opening T20I of the three-match series.

Batting first, the visitors posted a strong total of 194-9 in 20 overs, led by Reeza Hendricks’ impressive 60 off 40 balls.

Quinton de Kock (23) and Tony de Zorzi (33) provided quick runs at the top, while Mohammad Nawaz was the pick of Pakistan’s bowlers with three wickets, helping to slow South Africa’s scoring in the middle overs.

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In reply, Pakistan’s chase never took off as they were bowled out for 139 in 18.1 overs.

Despite a decent 31-run start from Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan, the home side collapsed after early breakthroughs from South Africa. Babar Azam fell for a duck on his return, and wickets tumbled regularly thereafter. Saim Ayub was the only notable contributor with 37 off 28 balls.

Corbin Bosch starred with the ball for South Africa, claiming four wickets, while George Linde added three to seal a comfortable win.

With this victory, South Africa took a 1-0 lead in the T20I series. The next T20I fixture is scheduled to be played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, on Friday, October 31.

READ: “We just need to bat properly,” says Salman Ali Agha after loss in T20I opener

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha has urged the batters to step up after defeat against South Africa here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

South Africa outplayed Pakistan in the first T20I of the three-match series by a hefty margin of 55 runs. The home side faltered while chasing 195-run target.

For Proteas, George Lined starred with the bat and ball. He made 36 from 22 balls with the help of four boundaries and a six. The left-hander backed his batting by crucial spell of three wickets, hence earning him player of the match award.

Catch Pakistan vs South Africa news updates here!

For Pakistan, besides Mohammad Nawaz all-round performance there was nothing much to cheer. Nawaz bowled an excellent spell of four overs, scalping three wickets which stem the visitors runs flow. He backed his bowling by an impressive batting, scoring 36 from 20 balls.

Speaking in the post match presentation, Agha highglighted the shortcoming of the match and lamented poor bowling in the opening overs.

“We didn’t start well with the ball, but we pulled things back. With the batting, we are losing wickets quickly, and we need to have a quick turnaround,” he said.

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Regarding aggressive batting approach, he stressed the need of buidling partnerships and sensible batting.

“We just need to bat properly, do singles and doubles, and build partnerships,” he continued.

The skipper noted that they can chase big total if they can bat long while admitting the vivid bowling in the first 10 overs.

“If we have partnerships we can chase such totals. We didn’t bowl well in the powerplay. Bowling top of off stump would’ve been good enough, but the positive is how we pulled it back later,” he conclulded.

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RAWALPINDI: South Africa made a triumphant start to the T20I series against the hosts Pakistan with a comprehensive 55-run victory here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Set a daunting 195-run target, Pakistan’s batting line faltered and were bowled out for 139 in 18.1 overs.

Sahizbada Farhan and Saim Ayub provided a good start with a 31-run stand in 4.5 overs. Farhan was bowled after making 24 from 19, whereas Saim got going after being dropped for nought earlier in the innings.

Once Farhan departed, the Proteas bowler tore through the home side’s middle order. Babar Azam could do much on his return to the shorter format, as he was caught for a duck.

Catch Pakistan vs South Africa news updates here!

Salman Ali Agha followed him after and could only manage two. Consequently, the Green Shirts were reduced to 3-43 in 7.2 overs.

Following the early hiccups, Saim then partnered with Usman Khan for a 39-run partnership. The duo’s brief stand somehow managed to arrest the slide.

Pakistan were gaining momentum; however, Saim’s wicket sparked a collapse that Pakistan could not recover from. The southpaw went back after scoring 37 from 28 balls, studded with a boundary and four sixes.

As a result, the home side slumped to 89-7 in 12.5 overs and were bowled out for a mere score.

For South Africa, Corbin Bosch starred with the ball, scalping four wickets in his quota of four overs. George Linde was equally good with three wickets.

Earlier, Reeza Hendricks’ 60 from 40 balls powered South Africa to a strong total.

Put in to bat, South Africa put on a strong batting display, racking up 194-9 in their 20 overs.

Openers Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks were off to a flyer, posting 44 in just 3.5 overs. The former rolled back the clock with his elegant stroke play, while the latter rose to the occasion with fine shots.

The dangerous stand eventually culminated in the introduction of Saim Ayub, removing De Kock after scoring 23 off 12 with the aid of five cracking fours.

Despite the wicket, the Proteas continued on their merry way with Tony de Zorzi taking Pakistani bowlers to the cleaners. The left-hander belted Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed for five fours and ended the powerplay with his side 74-1.

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However, once Mohammad Nawaz was introduced into the attack, the scoring rate went down, and De Zorzi was stumped due to a clever piece of bowling. He made 33 from 16, striking five fours and a maximum. As a result, South Africa were 2-93 in 7.4 overs.

Mohammad Nawaz kept mounting pressure with an excellent bowling spell. He cut through the Proteas’ middle order, which pegged them back and allowed Pakistan to squeeze their scoring rate.

However, Hendricks held the innings together and struck a half-century, with wickets tumbling around him. He hit five fours and a six in his knock.

For Pakistan, Mohammad Nawaz remained the standout bowler, picking up three wickets in his quota of four overs.

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RAWALPINDI: Pakistan have won the toss and decided to bowl first against South Africa in the opening T20I of the three-match series here at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Head to Head

Both teams have met 24 times in the shorter format, with each team winning an equal number of matches.

Matches 12: Pakistan 12, South Africa 12

Playing XIs

South Africa XI: Q de Kock†, RR Hendricks, T de Zorzi, D Brevis, MP Breetzke, D Ferreira*, GF Linde, C Bosch, LB Williams, N Burger, L Ngidi.

Pakistan XI: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Babar Azam, Agha Salman*, Usman Khan†, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Abrar Ahmed

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