ODI series: With Jamshed’s century, Pakistan outplay India

Shoaib’s winning boundary sealed the win by six wickets.

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Junaid Khan and Nasir Jamshed led the day, as the tourists defeated India on Sunday by six wickets in the opening match of the three-match One-Day International (ODI) series in Chennai.

Chasing a score of 228, Pakistan got off to a shaky start with Mohammad Hafeez bowled out by Bhuvneshwar Kumar on the very first ball of the innings.

Pakistan’s successful chase essentially started with the Jamshed and Younus Khan duo. While Younus marked his return to the ODIs with an impressive 58 off 60, it was Jamshed’s unbeaten score of 101, complemented by five fours and a six, which steered the team to victory.

Shoaib Malik’s winning boundary sealed the win with 11 balls to spare.

“It was a tough start when we lost Hafeez off the first ball,” said Jamshed. “Thankfully, I held my nerves. This century has definitely boosted my confidence.”

Misbah was pleased with the performance of both Junaid and Jamshed. “It was a good toss to win,” said Misbah. “Junaid was outstanding in his first spell. The pitch conditions were difficult in the first-half and Dhoni played very well. But Jamshed showed his mettle by finishing the game.”

Dhoni, who was declared man of the match, rued the lost toss. “It was a bad toss to lose. But I am happy with my batting. Initially, we thought the target was enough but it wasn’t good enough as our part-time bowlers struggled,” he said.

The second match of the series will be played on January 3 in Kolkata.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 31^st, 2012.