JOHANNESBURG, January 27: A dominant Pakistan cruised to victory in the fourth One-Day International (ODI) against South Africa at The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday, levelling the five-match series 2-2.
Batsmen sealed the win for the green shirts with eight wickets in hand and 111 balls to spare. Opener Imam-ul-Haq led the chase with 71 runs to follow up on his century in the third game while Fakhar Zaman made 44 in their opening stand of 70 runs. Babar Azam then joined Haq for a 94 run partnership for the second wicket.
As Pakistan cruised to 168-2, Haq’s wicket was taken one ball before the team clinched victory.
In the first inning, South Africa’s lower order collapsed under a deadly onslaught from Pakistani bowlers, who restricted Proteas to 164.
Pakistan played today’s match without skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was handed a four-match suspension by the International Cricket Council for his ‘racist’ remarks during the second ODI last week. Shoaib Malik led the green shirts, while Mohammad Rizwan was called in to replace Ahmed. Rizwan hit the winning runs today by cutting a four away through point in the first ball he faced.
Shoaib Malik is leading the team with Sarfraz Ahmed being replaced by Mohammad Rizwan. – DawnNewsTV
As the match kicked off, Pakistan won the toss and opted to field first. Opener Hashim Amla racked up 59 runs before being bowled out by Imad Wasim. Skipper Faf du Plessis was caught out at 57 by Muhammad Hafeez off a delivery from young Shadab Khan.25-year-old Usman Shinwari sent four batsmen back to the pavilion in his sixth and seventh overs, while Shaheen Shah Afridi captured three wickets. Shadab took a total of two, while Muhammad Amir took a single pelt.Proteas were decked out in pink kits for today’s Pink ODI to raise awareness about efforts to combat breast cancer. At the end of the first innings, Shinwari also dedicated his 4 for 35 in seven overs to those suffering from cancer.
