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Lucky to survive the group stages, Pakistan‘s miracle run towards the T20 World Cup final has been fulfilled after a seven-wicket win over New Zealand in the semi-final.
The Kiwis won the toss and elected to bat, but failed to fire as Pakistan restricted the side to 4-152 from its 20 overs, before its opening pair of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam shook off form slumps at the perfect time.
Pakistan paceman Shaheen Shah Afridi set the tone early, removing explosive New Zealand opener Finn Allen in his first over before finishing with figures of 2-24 from his four overs. New Zealand’s top-scorer Daryl Mitchell made an unbeaten 53 off 35.
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New Zealand captain Kane Williamson made 46 off 42 balls, but the Black Caps finished 10-15 runs below par courtesy of a terrific bowling performance from Pakistan’s pacemen in the final overs.
In the field, New Zealand was made to pay for a costly drop in the first over when wicketkeeper Devon Conway put down a chance to dismiss Azam on his first ball.
Conway dived to his right in time to make the catch but his right leg collapsed on the outstretch, causing him to glove the ball on the ground.
After managing just a combined 39 runs in his four innings at the World Cup, Babar found his best form in the nick of time, finishing with 53 off 42 balls before being caught in the deep.
Pakistan’s opening pair put together their eighth 100-run partnership in T20s, with the triple-figure mark reached in the 12th over. With the feat, Rizwan and Babar become the first duo ever to have three 100-run stands in T20 World Cup matches.
The pair also became the most successful partnership in terms of runs scored in T20 World Cup history surpassing the 572 runs scored by the previous record holders, Sri Lanka’s TM Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene.
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Late wickets to Trent Boult and Mitchell Santner ultimately proved futile for New Zealand as Pakistan reached the target with five balls to spare.
Pakistan lost its first two games of the tournament before flipping the script in its final three group matches. An unbelievable upset by the Netherlands over South Africa was the crowning stroke as Pakistan just slipped into the knockout stages.
Babar’s men will look to emulate the feats of Imran Khan’s Pakistan side of 30 years earlier by claiming a World Cup win at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday against either India or England.
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