Pakistan bag consolation win
An emotional match for the Pakistani team, the World Cup 2007 encounter against Zimbabwe was the first after the mysterious death of their coach Bob Woolmer. Secondly, it was the final ODI match for skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq, who recently announced his retirement from one-day cricket. And thirdly, it was the last match for Pakistan in the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
Played at the Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, this game will be remembered for the moment when a visibly emotional Inzamam bids adieu to the crowd, with tears in his eyes. A brilliant career-best 160 runs by Imran Nazir was the other highlight of this otherwise inconsequential game.
Delayed by rain a number of times, the game between Pakistan and Zimbabwe has confirmed Ireland a seat in the Super Eights, as both Zimbabwe and Pakistan head back home.
Put in to bat first, Pakistan played like a vengeful squad, looking to prove a point to the cricketing world. Opener Nazir fired on all cylinders, picking bowlers at will and hitting them all over the park. His 160 off 121 balls is so far the highest score in this World Cup. Nazir also hit eight scintillating sixes and 14 fours in his total score.
Inzamam scored a quickfire 37 off 35 in his last World Cup game, and was applauded all the way back to the pavilion. With tearful eyes, he raised his bat to salute the spectators and fellow cricketers. With this moment, the cricketing world bade goodbye to one of its most powerful middle-order batsmen and sportsman par excellence.
Eventually, Pakistan reached a total of 349, with decent scores from Younis Khan (28) and Iftikhar Anjum (32) lower down the order. For Zimbabwe, Elton Chigumbura (3-50) and Gary Brent (3-68) made worthwhile contributions.
Zimbabwean batsmen did nothing right in a match that was continuously interrupted by rains. None of them made any significant contribution, and the highest individual score for Zimbabwe was Chigumbura’s 27. Even though the result was quite discernible from the start, it kept getting delayed because of a two-hour rain-induced stoppage.
Nevertheless, when the players came back to the field, with the match reduced to 20 overs, Zimbabwe needed 163 off 58 balls. Pakistani bowlers finished things in style and did not allow Zimbabwe to reach the hundred mark. Shahid Afridi, playing his first match of the tournament (he was serving a two-match ban for indiscipline), picked 3 for 20 and in the process, reached a total of 200 wickets in ODIs. The whole team was bundled out on 99, and Pakistan won the match by 93 runs, according to the Duckworth-Lewis method.
Brief Score: Pakistan 349 (Nazir 160, Haq 37, Brent 3-68) vs. Zimbabwe 99 (Afridi 3-20)
Result: Pakistan won by 93 runs (D/L method)
Man of the Match: Imran Nazir
For latest updates of Cricket World Cup, check the following links:
Cricket World Cup Team Points
World Cup Match Results
World Cup Highlights
Group D Points
|
