CARDIFF (AFP/Web Desk) – Pakistan defeated England by 4 wickets in the fifth and final one-day international of the five match series played at Cardiff on Sunday.
Pakistan captain Azhar Ali won the toss and elected to field in the fifth and final one-day international against England. The hosts, 4-0 up and bidding for a first home 5-0 series whitewash, made three changes to the side that won by four wickets at Headingley on Thursday.
England gave an ODI debut to Hampshire left-arm spinner Liam Dawson, with specialist slow bowlers Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid both rested. Pacemen Chris Woakes and Mark Wood returned, with fast bowler Liam Plunkett also rested from this match in the Welsh capital.
Pakistan made two changes, left-arm quick Mohammad Amir returning after giant quick Mohammad Irfan was ruled out of the rest of the tour after cramping up at Headingley, and all-rounder Shoaib Malik replacing top-order batsman Sami Aslam. The Pakistan team also featured all-rounder Imad Wasim, born in the south Wales town of Swansea.
Opener Roy was the top-scorer for England with a score of 87 runs whereas middle-order batsman Stokes scored 75 runs. Quickie Hasan Ali picked 4 wickets while conceding 60 runs whereas Mohammad Amir bagged three wickets. The hosts were able to score 302 runs at the loss of 9 wickets when their innings came to an end.
After losing early wickets in the start, Pakistani middle-order batsmen Shoaib Malik and Sarfraz Ahmed played responsible innings and batted for 77 and 90 runs respectively which greatly lifted the side s morale. Rizwan was the other main contributor with the bat as he scored 34 runs and remained not out. Pakistan chased down the total with 10 balls to spare and 4 wickets in hand.
Mark Wook and Liam Dawson picked two wickets each for England. Hosts won the five match series 4-1.Lower full-toss and Imad Wasim hits it towards the legside for a boundary and Pakistan have survived the whitewash scare and have secured a four-wicket victory at Cardiff with 10 balls in hand. Sarfraz and Malik batted exceptionally well and were later on supported by Mohammad Rizwan and Imad Wasim.
Sarfraz and Malik continue to bat responsibly and score boundaries as they have been successful thus far in defying the English pace attack. Running between the wickets has also been impressive as both batsmen close-in on their half-centuries. Pakistan 168 for 3 after 27 overs.
Men in Green made a good start early on in their chase but lost wickets in quick succession which badly affected their run chase. Opener Sharjeel Khan was dismissed for 10 runs, skipper Azhar Ali edged a ball while attempting to leave it and gave his wicket away whereas Babar Azam was bowled by Wood. Middle-order batters Shoaib Malik and wicket keeper-batsman Sarfraz are at the crease looking to guide Pakistan towards their possible first one-day win of the tour. Pakistan 84 for 3 after 16 overs.
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