Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report Christchurch (New Zealand):-Pakistan register second back-to-back victory in the ongoing Tri-Nation cricket series after thrashing hosts New Zealand by 6 wickets, as blistering Babar Azam innings of 79 not out (53 balls) looked enough to reach the target at Hagley Oval cricket ground Christchurch, New Zealand on Saturday night. It is pertinent to mention here that Green Shirts had defeated Bangladesh by 21 runs last Friday at the same venue. Pakistan opened their innings with skipper Babar Azam and wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan to get the target of 148 runs. Mohammad Rizwan, who had earned man of the match award a day before against Bangladesh by scoring 78 runs not out in an inning, tried his best to settle his feet on the pitch but he could score only 4 runs after wasting 12 deliveries on the bowling of Tim Southee and was judged LBW. Babar Azam was in nice touch and played strokes all sides of the ground, as he faced 53 balls and hit 10 boundaries. Bowling allrounder Shahdab Khan scored 34 runs in 22 balls and aggregated 61 runs for the 3rd wicket partnership with skipper Babar Azam. Pakistan achieved their target on the 2nd ball of the penultimate over of the match. Earlier, Black Caps captain Kane Williamson decided to defend the target against Green Shirts, who had defeated Bangladesh by 21 runs a day back at the same venue, at home ground. Three small +30 runs innings, Devon Conway (36), Mark Chapman (32) and Williamson (31), helped Kiwis to get a total of 147 runs in 20 overs after losing their 8 batters. Phillips contributed 18 runs. At one stage, hosts batters were in commanding position and they were 130 for 3 in 17 overs, as it was expected the Black Caps would post over 160 runs target for the tourist team. On this occasion Shahnawaz Dahani got the important wicket of Phillips on the very first ball of 18th over, as the batter was caught by Asif Ali at midwicket boundary. Later, Haris Rauf and Mohammad Wasim did not allow them to hit big boundaries. They conceded just 17 runs in the last three overs and sent 5 batters back to hut. Haris Rauf claimed three wickets while Mohammad Wasim trapped two kiwi batters after giving 28 and 20 runs respectively. Left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz (2 for44) and lanky pacer Shahnawaz Dahani (1 for 22) were other successful bowlers. Summarized Scorecard (Pakistan vs New Zealand) Venue: Hagley Oval, Christchurch Toss: New Zealand, elected to bat first New Zealand batting (147 for 8 in 20 overs): Devon Conway c Haider Ali b Mohammad Nawaz 36 (35 balls, 4X2, 6X2) Kane Williamson b Mohammad Nawaz 31 (30 balls, 4X1) Glenn Phillips c Asif Ali b Shahnawaz Dahani 18 (17 balls, 4X1) Mark Chapman c Mohammad Wasim b Haris Rauf 32 (16 balls, 4X3, 6X2) Pakistan Bowling: Haris Rauf (3 for 28), Shahnawaz Dahani (1 for 22), Mohammad Wasim (2 for 20), Mohammad Nawaz (2 for 44) Pakistan Batting (Target 147 runs in 20 overs): Babar Azam not out 79 (balls 53, 4X10), Shadab Khan 34 (balls 22, 4X2, 6X2), Mohammad Nawaz 16(balls 19, 4X2) New Zealand Bowling: Trent Boult (1 for 22), Tim Southee (1 for 24), Blair Tickner (2 for 42) Pakistan Playing XIs: Mohammad Rizwan, Babar Azam (c), Shan Masood, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim, Haris Rauf, Shahnawaz Dahani New Zealand Playing XIs: Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (c), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, James Neesham, Michael Bracewell, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Blair Tickner    

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Christchurch (New Zealand):-Mohammad Rizwan scored yet another half-century as Pakistan kicked off their tri-series campaign with a 21-run win over Bangladesh at the Hagley Oval on Friday. Brilliant spells in the middle from Mohammad Wasim Jnr and Mohammad Nawaz restricted Bangladesh to 146 for eight after Pakistan posted 167 for five. This was wicketkeeper’s sixth half-century in last eight innings as he made 78 not out off 50 balls – hitting seven fours and two sixes. Rizwan and Babar Azam (22 off 25) added 52 runs for the first wicket in 7.1 overs. The ever-consistent opener then added 42 more runs with Shan Masood, who made 31 off 22. Bangladesh captain Nurul Hasan had elected to field after winning the toss and Pakistan set a 168-run target. Pakistan’s pacers were too hot to handle for the Bangladesh openers and Wasim struck in the fifth over as he accounted for Mehidy Hasan Miraz (10 off 11). His opening partner Sabbir Rahman (14 off 18) followed him the next over, getting caught and bowled off Haris Rauf. Litton Das and Afif Hossain made 35 off 26 and 25 off 23 and Yasir Ali, batting at seven, top-scored with 42 not out off 21 (five fours and two sixes). Nawaz struck on consecutive balls in the 13th over to curtail Litton’s stay at the crease. The next ball he sent Mosaddek Hossain back to the pavilion. After dismissing Taskin Ahmed and Nasum Ahmed, on the first two balls of the penultimate over, Wasim finished with three for 24. Mohammad Nawaz returned two for 25. Scores in brief: Pakistan 167-5, 20 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 78 not out, Shan Masood 31, Babar Azam 22; Taskin Ahmed 2-25) Bangladesh 146-8, 20 overs (Yasir Ali 42 not out, Litton Das 35, Afif Hossain 25; Mohammad Wasim Jnr 3-24, Mohammad Nawaz 2-25) Player of the match – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)

BIPIN DANI Sandeep Lamichhane is becoming the first Nepalese cricketer who will be spending at least the three nights in police custody. The 22-year-old legbreak googly bowler, who has been facing the rape allegations by a 17-year-old minor girl, was arrested immediately after he landed from the Qatar Airways flight at the Tribhuvan Internationbal Airport in Kathmandu on Thursday at around 10 in the morning. Sandeep surrendered himself and was handcuffed from the airport to the police station, though he had requested not to be hand-cuffed. "He has been sent to the Gaushala Jail, which is near to Nepal's most sacred Hindu Temple, Pashupatinath", one of the cricket sources in Nepal revealed. "He will remain in police custody until he is produced before the court on Sunday. We have Dussehra holidays till Friday and the court is closed on Saturday. We will come to know only on Sunday whether the court extends the police custody or grants bail. He is under trial now", the source further added. Shortly before his arrest Sandeep Lamichhane had promised on social media that he would fully cooperate in the investigation. He has hired the services of a prominent lawyer Saroj Ghimire, who is known to be a Lawyer for justice and committed to break all forms of conspiracy and plot and maintain high profession. Speaking exclusively, he said, "our court will hear the case on Sunday. The case has not reached a bail stage. The person is innocent till proven guilty". There was no anticipatory bail applied, confirmed the lawyer. "No anticipatory bail was applied and in this country the anticipatory bail on these types of allegations is not granted".  "Our primary concern was why Sandeep was hand-cuffed. He is not an individual but a player of an institution (Cricket Association of Nepal). He had himself surrendered and there were a number of police officials escorting him", the lawyer, who met Sandeep for about 10 minutes before being detained, added. Sandeep can be detained in this police custody maximum for a period of ten-days and then police has to apply for additional detention every time till the investigation is not over. 

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Shane Watson has used the latest episode of The ICC Review to reveal which pace bowler he thinks India should include if star quick Jasprit Bumrah is ruled out of the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup through injury. Bumrah is battling an ongoing back concern that caused him to miss the recent Asia Cup and has already been ruled out of the current three-match T20I series at home against South Africa. While India is still hoping Bumrah can prove his fitness and feature at the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia, it remains unclear whether the right-armer will remain in India’s squad for the event. Experienced seamers Mohammad Shami and Deepak Chahar are among the players already on India's standby list for the T20 World Cup, while Mohammad Siraj is also in the mix to feature given he received a call-up to replace Bumrah for the remainder of the South Africa T20 series. Watson is adamant that Siraj is the best option for India to include if they receive the dreaded news that Bumrah will be forced to miss the 20-over showcase Down Under. "The player I would put in if Jasprit’s not available is Mohammad Siraj, because of the firepower he presents," Watson told host Sanjana Ganesan on The ICC Review. "Without Bumrah, that’s the one thing India won’t necessarily have, which is vital on Australian wickets on the bigger grounds with the pace and bounce. "Siraj is great with the brand new ball. He is fast, he swings the ball away but also his defensive skills are pretty good. "And he’s got better over the last couple of years, with what we’ve seen in the IPL. "So, for me he’s probably going to be the one who is going to have the most impact." Watson thinks India's chances of claiming a second T20 World Cup title will be severely hampered should Bumrah not make the trip to Australia. Bumrah took more wickets than any other India pacer at last year's T20 World Cup and it’s the 28-year-old’s versatility to bowl superbly with the new ball and at the death that Watson thinks India will miss most. "Honestly, I think it’s going to have a huge impact on India’s chances of winning the T20 World Cup,” Watson noted.  

BIPIN DANI Sri Lanka could not host the last Asia Cup in Sri Lanka due to the economic crisis and political unrest in the country, but it is now "safe" to host the forthcoming Lanka Premier League (LPL). This was revealed by former captain Sanath Jayasuriya. Speaking exclusively here in Mumbai, where the 53-year-old came to attend the second Road Show hosted by the Sri Lanka Tourism and Consulate General of Sri Lanka, Jayasuriya said, "Sri Lanka is now safer than what it was a few months ago. We will certainly host the LPL successfully and welcome the foreign players and the visitors. We want more people from the Asian countries to come and watch the matches and be satisfied with yourselves". Interestingly, Jayasuriya, who is a part of the Sri Lanka Legends team participating in the Road Safety World Series in India, came immediately playing the match against Bangladesh team in Raipur and returned to Raipur in the wee hours on Thursday to play the second Semi Final against West Indies. Chances of winning the upcoming World Cup 2022 in Australia, Jayasuriya says, "Our team is capable of winning the World Cup. Look at our recent performance in the Asia Cup. We were underdogs for the Asia Cup. When our team lost against Afghanistan, the people had written off our team and India was favourite to win it but ultimately, Sri Lankan team rose to the occasion". "Same thing had happened in the 1996 World Cup. No one had said that Sri Lanka would reach the Semi Final but we won the World Cup and therefore we urge the fans not to undermine our performance on and off the field".  

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Lahore:-An unbeaten innings of 88 runs by English batter Phil Salt played a vital role in the England’s win that leveled the T20 bilateral cricket series 3-3 of the 7 fixtures at Gaddafi Stadium Lahore on Friday night. A sparkling innings with a strike rate of 214.63 including 13 fours and three huge sixes after facing only 41 balls, Salt had no mercy for any bowler and hit strokes bravely all around the ground and got full advantage in the first 6 overs field restrictions. Both opener Salt and Hales plundered 55 runs in 3.5 overs for the first wicket. The England openers were sensational in the powerplay, smoking the Pakistan bowlers all around the park and had accumulated 50 by the end of the third over – with Salt on 26 off 10 and Hales having blasted 23 runs off just eight balls. A wise introduction of Shadab Khan in the fourth over promised to turn the run chase on its head as the leg-spinner removed Hales on the fifth ball of the over that gave away only five runs, but Salt was unstoppable at the other end and dispatched Mohammad Nawaz for three fours and a six in the fifth over. Malan then got two boundaries off Mohammad Wasim Jnr in the sixth over, one off the edge and the other through a beautiful drive through covers as England finished the powerplay with 82 for one. Salt’s assault continued as he reached 50 in only 19 balls on the second ball of the seventh over – after having whacked Aamir Jamal, the hero of the previous T20I, for a four through covers on the previous ball. With Malan providing support from the other end, Salt continued his onslaught. Malan was LBW in the 10th over off Shadab with England just 42 runs away from the target. Ben Duckett, who has had a phenomenal series with the bat but couldn’t fire in the last match, ensured England’s run-rate never dropped and made 26 not out off only 16. Salt finished with 13 fours and three sixes next to his name in his undefeated 41-ball innings. Earlier, England skipper Moeen Ali after winning the toss for the fifth time in the series opted to chase, having made two changes to his side with Mark Wood and Chris Woakes being replaced by Reece Topley and Richard Gleeson. Despite a bad start to their innings with debutant Mohammad Haris and Shan Masood out by 3.2 overs, Pakistan, courtesy a fantastic 87 not out at a strike rate of 147 from captain Babar Azam, posted a respectable 169 for six in allotted 20 overs. Pakistan could muster only five runs in the first two overs and despite Haris, who replaced injured Mohammad Rizwan in the line-up – swatting Gleeson for a six over his head could not get going as the wicketkeeper was caught at short third-man, attempting a ramp. Shan, shuffling across, was trapped LBW off David Willey and with Pakistan two wickets down for only 15 was when Babar decided to attack the visitors and smashed the left-arm fast bowler for two fours on the last three balls. As Haider started to look good, a short-ball from Sam Curran curtailed his stay in the ninth over that brought Iftikhar Ahmed in the middle. It seemed like Iftikhar had come with the intention of going after Adil Rashid. He picked the leg-spinner’s googly with ease and dispatched it for a boundary between the long-on and deep mid-wicket fielders. The next Adil over – 12th of the innings – he clubbed the ball down the ground for a six. But the highlight of his innings came in the 14th over when he hit Adil for a gigantic six over deep mid-wicket that sent the jam-packed Gaddafi Stadium crowd in a frenzy and brought up Pakistan’s 100. Gleeson started the 16th with long-on and long-off up in what seemed like a challenge thrown to Asif to test his batting skills against short-pitched balls. Asif smashed Gleeson for a four over mid-on and two balls later Babar deposited the right-arm pacer over long-on to become the joint fastest, with Virat Kohli, to breach the 3,000-run mark in the format. From this point, the fans were in for a Babar masterclass. The artful strokemaker beautifully worked a full toss over cover for a maximum in the 17th over. Pakistan gathered 19 in the last over, bowled by Topley, and it was Babar who provided the momentum – helping a slower bouncer to the fine-leg boundary on the first ball and drilling the ball in the slot over long-on for a six the next. Mohammad Nawaz added six more to the total with a swat over mid-wicket on the penultimate ball and holed out to long off the final ball. Green Shirts closed their innings at the score of 169 for 6 in 20 overs per innings fixture. Summarised Scorecard: England beat Pakistan by 8 wickets Toss: England won and decided to bowl first Pakistan Batting (169 for 6 in 20 overs): Babar Azam 87 runs not out (balls 59, 4X7, 6X3), Iftikhar Ahmed 31 runs (balls 21, 4X2, 6X2), Haider Ali 18 runs (balls 14, 4X1, 6X1), Mohammad Nawaz 12 runs (balls 7, 4X0, 6X1) England Bowling: Sam Curran (2 for 26), David Willey (2 for 32), Reece Toplay (1 for 31), Richard Gleeson (1 for 39) England Batting (Target 170 in 20 overs): Phil Salt 88 runs not out (balls 41, 4x13, 6x3), Alex Hales 27 runs (balls 12, 4X4, 6X1), Ben Duckett runs 26 not out (balls 16, (4X4, 6X0), Dawid Malan 26 runs (balls 18, 4X5, 6X0) Pakistan Bowling: Shahdab Khan (2 for 34) Player of the match: Phil Salt (England) Next match on Sunday at the same venue

BIPIN DANI Former Pakistan captain Moin Khan has been denied the US visa, it is learnt. According to the sources in Pakistan, the 51-year-old Khan was scheduled to leave for the USA this week as he is one of the three international nominees for the Cricket Hall of Fame award which is scheduled to be held in the USA on October 1. The Cricket Hall of Fame institution in the USA was founded in 1980 to celebrate the sport of cricket, its heroes and supporters who, in the true spirit of the game over the years, have served the game. The other two international cricketers to receive this award this year are : ex-windies batter Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Sir Richie Richardson, the former West Indies cricketer, who now is the ICC match-referee. "We received a note from Moin Khan's agent stating the rejection of Moin's visa. He will now be felicitated online", Michael Chambers, the Executive Director of the institution said over the telephone. In the meantime, Cricket Council USA (CCUSA) is hosting the World Cup 2022 Legends Tournament next month. "It will be held at the Central Broward Regional Park", Mahammad A. Qureshi, the CEO and the chairman of CCUSA said. "It is an ICC approved venue, which can accomodate 20,000 spectators and T-20I are being played", Qureshi added.

Ali Ahmed Ch Lahore:-Pakistan, for the second time in as many games, nullified the notion that the mantra to success in T20 cricket is to win the toss and chase. After edging England out by three runs in Karachi on Sunday, Babar Azam’s side on Wednesday defended their lowest score in Pakistan (145) in another thriller to go 3-2 up in the seven-match series at the iconic Gaddafi Stadium. Mohammad Nawaz was phenomenal with the new ball and derailed England’s run chase from its onset with the wicket of Alex Hales, who trying to swat the left-arm orthodox down the ground edged the ball into the hands of short third-man. Phil Salt picked up the only fielder guarding the leg-side boundary on the first ball of the fourth over when he flicked Haris Rauf to leave England at 19 for two. Mohammad Wasim Jnr bowled a brilliant fifth over, beating Dawid Malan four times by hitting the corridor of uncertainty and when Malan finally got off the strike with a thick edge on the fifth ball, Ben Duckett’s attempted cut ended into third-man’s hands. The introduction of spin further compounded problems for England. The pair of Shadab Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed bowled eight overs in tandem that allowed only 41 runs, but more importantly accounted for in-form Harry Brook and Malan. The overs seven till 10 allowed England only one boundary and Shadab, making his comeback into the side, got Brook LBW – when the on-field umpire’s decision was overturned through DRS. Iftikhar, after drinks, sent Malan back to the pavilion in a similar fashion. Shadab’s four overs allowed 25 runs, while Iftikhar gave away only 16 runs. That the match went till the final ball was because of Moeen Ali’s rearguard knock. The England captain scored 51 not out off 37 and took the game deep in the hope that he may target any weak link in the Pakistan bowling line-up. Debutant Aamir Jamal, who replaced Mohammad Hasnain, was given the task of defending 15 off six. The right-arm fast bowler was exceptional with his wide yorkers, sending down dots on his first two balls, and despite being dispatched for a six on the third legal delivery (the previous one being a wide outside off-stump), he made a terrific comeback to allow only a single – that off a penultimate ball. Pakistan had made two more changes with Haider Ali coming in for Khushdil Shah and Mohammad Wasim Jnr replacing Shahnawaz Dahani. Moeen, after calling correctly at the toss, decided to stick with the set template of winning the toss and opting to chase a total down as England made a plethora of changes that brought back Mark Wood, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran and Malan into the mix.  Wood continued his brilliant return to international cricket – after a long elbow injury-induced layoff – as his sheer pace and intelligent lengths garnered him the key wickets of Babar Azam, Haider Ali and Asif Ali. Pakistan lost their captain – the hosts’ first wicket – in the third over as Babar pulled Wood into the hands of deep square-leg. Mohammad Rizwan and Shan Masood – with a 25-run partnership in 18 balls - looked on course to rebuild the innings and launch a counterattack but the latter, in his attempt to paddle David Willey over short fine-leg, edged the ball handing an easy catch to Duckett at backward point towards the end of the powerplay. Haider top-edged a pull for Wood to catch off his own bowling and four overs later Iftikhar followed him back to the pavilion, becoming Willey’s second and last wicket. Asif Ali was bowled off Wood in the next over, but Pakistan’s innings slid further into disarray in the 14th over as Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan were run out in the space of four balls that left Pakistan at a paltry 100 for seven. That Pakistan managed 145 was because of Rizwan’s gutsy half-century, his fourth in the series. The wicketkeeper – struggling to find a reliable partner at the other end - stayed at the crease till the 18th over and made 63 off 46 before his signature pick-up shot off Sam Curran landed in Adil Rashid’s hands. Like Willey, Sam also returned two for 23.  Wasim and Haris struck a four and a six, respectively, in the penultimate over, bowled by Chris Woakes, that lifted the hosts to 145 before the right-armer accounted for Haris on the last ball as Pakistan were bowled out with an over to spare.  Rizwan was named player of the match. Scores in brief: Pakistan 145 all out, 19 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 63; Mark Wood 3-20, David Willey 2-23, Sam Curran 2-23) England 139-7, 20 overs (Moeen Ali 51 not out, Dawid Malan 36; Haris Rauf 2-41) Player of the match – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan).

BIPIN DANI Indian all-rounder Deepti Sharma is in the news for being the first woman cricketer to run out the England batter without delivering the ball. At Lord's on Saturday, she knocked off the stumps at non-striker's end when Charlie Dean was out of the crease and thus the first instance of the woman ODI ended abruptly. Indian spinner R. Ashwin, who had also ran out England batter Jos Buttler in a similar fashion in the IPL has praised Deepti Sharma's "presence of mind" and stated that the bowler should be credited with the wicket and be given the bravery award. He may have said this in jest as the bowler is never credited for the run out wicket but his comments have not gone well with the world's highest wicket taker Muthiah Muralitharan. Speaking exclusively over the telephone from Cuttack, where he is playing the Legends League in India,legendary off-spinner Murali says, "what presence of mind ? No cricketer would play international matches if he or she has no presence of mind. I would have appreciated Deepti (Sharma) if she had given the warning to the non-striker first. It would have been in the right spirit of the game then".   Late reports coming from England suggest that the 25-year-old all rounder had warned the batter and also informed the umpires prior to running her out. However, England team has denied having received such warning.   "Yes, lawfully, she (Deepti Sharma) was right in running out the non-striker but that's in the law and not in the spirit of the game. The white ball game is a pressure game and in a tight situation the non-striker may have left the crease early and if this act by the non-striker is repeated, the run out is justified. Not otherwise in my opinion".  India's former wicket-keeper Syed Kirmani also echoed the same views. "Where is the Bravery & presence of mind “ and a  “BRAVERY AWARD” Hah !!! Sorry Ashwin, you have been a party to such Bravery in the past. Come on guys, bring back the gentleman spirit into the game". "If the Bowler feels that the non- striker is taking advantage of backing, the right spirit is to warn him / her ( like Courtney Walsh/ Viv Richards ). If a non-striker continues after warning then the bowler is legitimate to run him out", Kirmani added. Rita Dey, who was a selector when Deepti Sharma started playing cricket sees no point in warning. "Law is a law! The ICC made the rule then why there are irrelevant questions ? It's (running out) fair. The batter was completely out of crease by miles before the ball gets delivered and the rule is under ICC legitimate rules. No point in questioning if it's fair or not", she said.

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Karachi, 25 September 2022: Pakistan celebrated their 200th T20I with a thrilling win in a match that swung like a pendulum - the hosts ran out England’s last batter at 19.2 overs to record a three-run win. The Sunday’s victory at the National Stadium has levelled the seven-match series 2-2 and added a pinch of excitement ahead of the last three matches to be played at the Gaddafi Stadium. The 18th over of the run chase had almost settled the match for England with Liam Dawson smashing Mohammad Hasnain for a six, four off a no-ball, four, four and another four, before a dot and a single on the last two balls. The over had began with England needing 33 and the tourists needed nine off 12 at its conclusion. Haris Rauf’s marvellous death bowling - in the next over - turned the match on its head. Dawson swatted Haris for a boundary in front of square on the second ball, but Haris, undeterred, followed it up with a bouncer which garnered Pakistan his crucial wicket. Dawson was beaten by pace and ended up holing out to midwicket. Haris and Dawson had a chat about the dismissal after the match and the fast bowler told PCB Digital Dawson was anticipating a yorker after hitting him a four on the previous ball, but he pulled his length back instead. Proper mind games! Olly Stone, in his debut match, recorded a golden duck the next ball as a scorching yorker rattled his stumps and with five remaining off the last eight balls, Reece Topley could yield only one run off a leg-bye in the over. The drop-scene came in the last over when Shan Masood, the ever-alert Shan Masood, gathered the ball at mid-on, ran towards the non-striker’s end and dislodged the bails with an underarm flick when Topley attempted to sneak in a single to bring Adil Rashid on strike. Pakistan’s defence of 167 was off to a solid start with Mohammad Nawaz accounting for Phil Salt in the first over, albeit after being smashed for two fours. Hasnain bowled beautifully in the powerplay, allowing England batters to get only 11 runs in his first two overs. He got the prized wickets of Alex Hales, who returned to the side after sitting out in the previous game, and Will Jacks in his first over (the second of the match). The former mistimed a pull that Usman Qadir gathered with an athletic dive at short midwicket and the latter was bowled with a lovely length ball. Ben Duckett and Harry Brook, who set up a remarkable win for England on Friday, looked in prime touch, and launched a terrific counterattack that stunned Pakistan and the National Stadium crowd alike. Pakistan could have had England four down inside the powerplay had Nawaz not spilled a sitter at cover with Brook on four. Duckett attacked Mohammad Wasim Jnr in the fifth over, hitting him for three fours on the bounce, and added 43 runs in 5.2 overs with Brook before Nawaz had him trapped LBW in front. But that did not deter England from continuing with the attack and the pair of Brook and Moeen Ali struck a 49-run partnership off 30 balls. The England captain became Nawaz’s third and final wicket of the match in the 14th over. David Willey ramped Haris for consecutive fours to continue to lessen the difference between the runs required and the balls remaining, before Dawson took on Hasnain in the 18th over. Pakistan, for the third time in four matches, accumulated more than 50 runs in the powerplay thanks to the solid foundation that the world’s most successful opening pair of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam had laid. Pakistan were 52 for none at the completion of the sixth over with Rizwan playing the lead role, scoring 38 off 26, hitting seven off the eight fours. Babar Azam got in the groove in the eight over, dispatching David Willey for consecutive boundaries, but Adil Rashid’s next over tightened things for the two batters, leaking only three singles and Liam Dawson gave away eight in the next as Pakistan were 82 for none at the drinks. Rizwan smashed Adil for a six over midwicket, but Babar fell in the next over. Over next five overs, the pair of Rizwan and Shan, who had breached the 50-run mark just in his second T20I last match in only 28 balls, added 40 runs, as the hosts failed to capitalise the death overs. Masood was LBW in the penultimate over off Willey and Khushdil Shah and Rizwan fell on the first two balls of the final over, bowled by Reece Topley. The packed National Stadium, however, was in for an entertaining end, as Asif Ali hit two gigantic sixes off the three balls he faced to lift Pakistan to 166 for four. Scores in brief: Pakistan beat England by three runs Pakistan 166-4, 20 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 88, Babar Azam 36, Shan Masood 21; Reece Topley 2-37) England 163 all out, 19.2 overs (Liam Dawson 34, Harry Brook 34, Ben Duckett 33, Moeen Ali 29; Haris Rauf 3-32, Mohammad Nawaz 3-35, Mohammad Hasnain 2-40) Player of the match – Haris Rauf (Pakistan)