——– Loses World Cup tie from winning position
——– Secures 113 for seven wickets against 120 target
——– West Indies win by 134 runs against Uganda
Sports Desk
NEW YORK: Pakistan choked in the final sequence of their World Cup 2024 clash with India to somehow surrender a tie they dominated for large parts of the game in New York on Sunday.
Chasing a meagre 120, the Green Shirts could only manage 113 for the loss of 7 wickets as their run chase inexplicably, but also expectedly, derailed, bringing them on the verge of a swift exit out of the tournament. The Green Shirts were given two lifelines early on when both their openers, Babar Azam and Mo-hammad Rizwan, were dropped by Indian fielders. However, Jasprit Bumrah swiftly removed Babar, in addition to proving a nuisance for Pakistan all through the innings.
Others in Pakistan’s top and middle orders contributed in double figures but did not last long, although the run chase kept on ticking along, making it Pakistan’s game to lose.
The expectation was for Rizwan (31) to hang in till the end. However, when Bumrah returned in the 15th over, he got rid of Rizwan, which opened up the floodgates as wickets kept on falling but the hits needed to get closer to the target never came.
In the end, Pakistan finished with 113-7, falling seven runs short of the target.
Earlier, Pakistan pacers exploited New York’s overcast conditions to the fullest, limiting India to 119.
Indian inningsIndian great Virat Kohli was caught at point by youngster Usman Khan on the third deliv-ery of the second over.
Opener Rohit Sharma was the next to depart after three good balls from Shaheen piled pressure on him. He tried to flick the ace pace over square but was caught in the deep by Haris Rauf.
Axar was bowled by Naseem in the 8th over after the pacer was brought back into the attack.
Suryakumar Yadav was dismissed by Haris Rauf in the 12th over. The pacer was dispatched for three boundaries in his first over but came back strongly to concede only a single run from his second over, picking up the prized wicket of Yadav.
Shivam Dube scooped the ball to Naseem and departed next as the pacer claimed his third wicket of the game.
Amir got consecutive wickets in the 15-over, dismissing Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja as the wheels came off the Indian innings.
Although both countries are cricket powerhouses, head-to-head matches are rare between the na-tions. The two sides do not meet outside of official competitions of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the last Test match between them was in 2007.
The Rohit Sharma-led India were to Babar Azam and his men in their Group A match at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York — the 34,000-capacity venue built earlier this year.
The tickets for the high-profile encounter were sold out months ago.
A loss in today’s match would significantly diminish Pakistan’s chances to qualify for the Super Eight stage of the 20-nation spectacle.
According to AccuWeather, there was a 43 per cent chance of rain before the start of the tie, a proba-bility which rose to 54pc at 11am New York time.
Earlier, West Indies won by a whopping 134 runs against Uganda, their largest margin of victory in terms of runs in a T20 match, on Sunday at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas.
Chasing a target of 174 runs, Uganda were bundled out for only 39 runs, the joint-lowest team total in the men’s T20 World Cup, in 12 overs. The Netherlands were also dismissed for the same score against Sri Lanka in Chattogram in 2014.
Left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein bowled a sensational spell as he claimed five wickets for just 11 runs in four overs. He also bagged the award for Player of the Match.
“I think I needed this. In the nets and the previous series, I felt the ball was coming out good but I was just not getting the rewards,” Hosein said after the match.
“I think it is a lot of hard work. When you get success, guys are going to study you and have a plan. You always have to stay a step ahead. For me, it is just about trying to react to what the surface is doing and planning it out. Even if the ball is going both ways, you cannot do much if you don’t plan. So, it is about planning the over well. I am happy to bowl wherever the team needs me.”
Hosein became the first West Indies bowler to take a five-wicket haul in a men’s T20 World Cup in-nings.
Alzarri Joseph also chipped in with two wickets for six runs in three overs.
Only tailender Juma Miyagi could get into double figures for Uganda with 13 unbeaten runs in 20 balls.
Earlier, West Indies won the toss and decided to bat first against Uganda. Batting first, the Windies scored 173-5 in their allotted 20 overs.
Johnson Charles top-scored with 44 runs in 42 balls with the help of four fours and two sixes.
Andre Russell played a quick cameo of 30 runs in 17 balls, which included six fours.
Uganda captain Brian Masaba was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2-31 in four overs.
Windies, who were playing their second match, began their campaign with a victory against Papua New Guinea (PNG) but it wasn’t a convincing one.
Uganda, on the other hand, lost by 125 runs against Afghanistan but a spirited performance in their next match against PNG helped them bag their first-ever T20 World Cup win.
Both teams did not make any changes to their lineup for this match.
Teams:
Uganda XI: Roger Mukasa, Simon Ssesazi (wk), Robinson Obuya, Riazat Ali Shah, Alpesh Ramjani, Dinesh Nakrani, Juma Miyagi, Kenneth Waiswa, Brian Masaba (c), Cosmas Kyewuta, Frank Nsubuga.
West Indies XI: Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell (c), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie.
