Cricket: Pakistan crush Bangladesh with T20I series whitewash
by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath
Haris powers Shaheen to series sweep
After winning the toss and opting to bowl first at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Sunday, Pakistan were set on the backfoot early with Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Hossain Emon producing a superb opening stand of 110 for Bangladesh.
However, after Hasan fell to Faheem Ashraf in the 11th over, the Shaheens came storming back into the contest, knocking over Emon three balls later, while strangling the Tigers’ middle order and containing them to 196/6, which was on par with the expectations of most cricket predictions.
Pakistan got off the a disastrous start with the bat, losing the crucial wicket of Sahibzada Farhan in the first over with just eight runs on the board, but that brought Mohammad Haris to the crease, and the wicket-keeper batsman proved to be the game-changer.
Harris and Saim Ayub put on a second-wicket partnership of 92 runs off just 53 deliveries before Ayub was sent back to the pavilion by Tanzim Hasan Sakib at a crucial juncture in the match, with the Green Shirts needing 97 runs from 60 balls.
Hassan Nawaz came in and smashed a quickfire 26 off 13 to accelerate the run rate before falling to Mehidy Hasan Miraz, but Haris, together with his skipper Salman Ali Agha, refused to step off the gas and got their team over the line with two overs and four balls to spare.
Haris ended the innings with an unbeaten 107 from a mere 46 deliveries, including eight fours and seven sixes, while posting a scintillating strike rate of 232.61 to earn his side their first T20 series victory since early December against Zimbabwe.
Youthful energy paints bright future for Pakistan
It is no secret that Pakistan cricket has endured a very difficult couple of years, which included dismal performances at the ODI and T20 World Cups, and a premature elimination from the ICC Champions Trophy on home soil earlier this year.
However, this series may have just breathed new life into the Pakistani side, thanks to the promotion of young talents, such as Hassan Nawaz and Mohammad Haris, who could play key roles in transforming the Shaheen’s batting dynamics.
Nawaz was instrumental in the first two T20Is in this series, delivering solid knocks that gave the team a foundation to build on, while Haris’s innings in the third match saw him become the first non-opener to score a T20I ton for the Green Shirts and the second-fastest century-maker in the team’s history.
Similarly, Pakistan's bowling unit also looked much better, with Shadab Khan rediscovering his form and Abrar Ahmed continuing to build a reputation as a capable spinner in the limited-overs format, which is something the team has lacked since Saeed Ajmal. Speaking after the victory, a beaming Salman Ali Agha said:
“As long as I’m captain, this is how we’ll play. This is the way forward. The world plays like this now—you have to keep bowlers and batters under pressure. In New Zealand, the conditions didn’t allow it, but the boys learned how to be fearless without being careless. That’s something we balanced perfectly in this series.”
Pakistan’s next assignment will come at the end of July, when they travel to the Americas to face the West Indies in a three-match T20I series in Florida, before three one-day internationals at the Brian Lara Stadium in August.
