- Pakistan close out their Zimbabwe tour with a 2-1 T20I series win
Bulawayo, 5 December 2024: Zimbabwe registered a thrilling two-wicket consolation win over Pakistan in the third and final T20I with just one ball remaining here at the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo on Thursday afternoon. Pakistan, who sealed the series 2-1, had set a 133-run target for Zimbabwe earlier after opting to bat first.
Requiring 21 to win off the last two overs of the chase, Zimbabwe managed nine runs in the penultimate over off Mohammad Abbas Afridi to set themselves 12 to win in the last over.
Debutant Tinotenda Maposa smoked Jahandad for a four and a six on the first two balls of the over, respectively and levelled the scores with a single as Richard Ngarava scored the winning run on the fifth ball of the over.
Opening batters Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani (15, 6b, 3x4s) got Zimbabwe off to a flying start putting on 40 runs off 3.2 overs as they set out in pursuit of a modest target. Player of the match Bennett hit six fours and and one six in his 35-ball 43-run stay on the crease.
Zimbabwe slipped from 70-1 in nine overs 112-6 in 18 overs as they lost five wickets for 42 runs in 54 balls. Apart from Bennett no other Zimbabwean batter crossed the 20-run mark.
For Pakistan Abbas Afridi was the pick of the bowlers returning figures of 3-24 in his four-over quota. Jahandad picked up two wickets while Salman Ali Agha and Sufyan Moqim dismissed one batter each. Sufyan, for his nine wickets in the series, was also named player of the series.
Earlier, Pakistan slipped to 19-3 in four overs before skipper Salman Ali Agha top-scored with a run-a-ball 32 including three fours while No.5 batter Tayyab Tahir chipped in with 21 off 14 balls hitting two fours and one six.
Pakistan were 66-4 at the halfway mark and 96-6 in 15 overs as Zimbabwe bowlers kept the scorecard in check. Valuable lower order contributions by Arafat Minhas (22, not out, 26b, 2x4s), Qasim Akram (20, 15b, 3x4s) and Abbas Afridi (15, 14b, 3x4s) led Pakistan to 132-7 in 20 overs.
For Zimbabwe, Blessing Muzarabani picked up two wickets while Tinotenda Maposa, Ryan Burl, Wellington Masakadza and Ngarava dismissed one batter each.
Scores in brief
Match 3 - Zimbabwe beat Pakistan by two wickets at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
Pakistan 132-7, 20 overs (Salman Ali Agha 32, Arafat Minhas 22 not out, Tayyab Tahir 21, Qasim Akram 20; Blessing Muzarabani 2-25)
Zimbabwe 133-8, 19.5 overs (Brian Bennett 43, Sikandar Raza 19; Mohammad Abbas Afridi 3-24, Jahandad Khan 2-30)
