Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez was batting when rain interruption cost his team the first Twenty20 in Johannesburg. PHOTO: AFP
Fortune is not yet favouring Mohammad Hafeez and his men as Pakistan were edged out by four runs in the opening Twenty20 match South Africa via the Duckworth/Lewis (D/L) method.
The heavens opened up with Pakistan placed at 60 for two in 9.1 overs after being set a target of 154 runs at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.
Heavy rain and thunder kept the teams away from the field for the rest of the night which meant that the hosts were declared winners as the par score at the time of interruption according to the D/L method was 64.
Earlier in the evening, Pakistan’s bowlers toiled manfully to restrict the hosts to 153 after the pair of Hashim Amla and Quinton De Kock got the hosts off to a swashbuckling start. The two scored at 10 runs per over to put pressure on the visitors in the first six overs of the match.
Man-of-the-match De Kock top-scored with 43 while Amla scored 31 runs, after which skipper Hafeez applied the brakes, claiming two wickets in his four-over spell. Shahid Afridi was also at his miserly best as he picked up one wicket and conceded a mere 14 runs.
In a surprise move, Pakistan left out ace spinner Saeed Ajmal after the start of the match was delayed due to rain. Young all-rounder Bilawal Bhatti came in his stead as he made his international debut. The 22-year-old claimed figures of one for 35 from his four overs, often troubling the batsmen with his lively pace. The second Twenty20 will be played in Cape Town today.
Kallis returns to South Africa ODI squad
Jacques Kallis begins a bid to earn a place at the 2015 Cricket World Cup squad when he returns to the South African One-Day International (ODI) squad for a series against Pakistan starting in Cape Town on Sunday.
Kallis, who turned 38 last month, has not played in an ODI since February 2012 as part of a programme to manage the remaining years of his career.
Batsman Faf du Plessis and left-arm spinner Robin Peterson were omitted from the squad that beat Pakistan 4-1 in a series in the UAE recently.
South Africa Test captain Graeme Smith also returns to the one-day side after returning early from the UAE because of post-concussion syndrome following a blow to the head in the second Test match.
South Africa will play three ODIs against Pakistan this month, followed by three against India during December.
The South Africa squad includes AB de Villiers (c), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Jacques Kallis, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Vernon Philander, Graeme Smith, Dale Steyn and Lonwabo Tsotsobe.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 22nd, 2013.
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