Shadab’s all-round heroics guide Pakistan A to win

Side defeats Zimbabwe A by eight wickets in four-day match

KARACHI: An all-round performance by Shadab Khan guided Pakistan A to an eight-wicket win over Zimbabwe A on the fourth day of their second unofficial Test at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe yesterday.

Zimbabwe, who had made 346 runs in their first innings before Pakistan countered with a mammoth 512 runs, resumed their second innings on 53-2 but were all out for 202, giving Pakistan A a meagre 38-run target to chase.

Pakistan A star all-rounder Shadab (32), who scored a century in Pakistan’s first innings, dismissed five Zimbabwean batsmen for just 82 runs in his 20-over spell. The leg-spinner was well supported by Muhammad Asghar, who took three wickets for 61 runs, while Mir Hamza and Ghulam Mudassar had taken a wicket apiece the previous day.





Tarisai Musakunda top scored for the Africans, with his 87 runs coming off 192 balls, whereas Sean Williams chipped in with 42 runs on a day most batsmen were unable to survive Pakistan’s attack for too long.

Pakistan A reached their 38-run target for the loss of two wickets as openers Zain Abbas and Jaahid Ali scored 22 and 12 runs respectively.

Shadab, the star of the show, later explained that his approach was very simple.



“I kept my focus on the ball, tried to stay on the crease for as much time as possible, and kept on rotating the strike,” he told The Express Tribune. “I will have to join Rawalpindi for Quaid-e-Azam Trophy once we return to Pakistan, so this performance could help me there as well.”

He added, “Zimbabwe had a good partnership at the start but once that ended other wickets started to tumble. Asghar and I also discussed my bowling strategies at length which really helped us take wickets.”

Meanwhile, the in-form Ghulam Mudassar credited captain Sohaib Maqsood and his teammates for his great performance throughout the series.

“It was my first tour and I am glad that I was able to perform,” said Mudassar. “The pitch here was flat and we had difficulty in bowling but the support of other bowlers and the captain made it possible.” 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 19^th, 2016.

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