HYDERABAD – Pakistan on Friday bagged a clinical victory of 81 runs over Netherlands in their opening match of the ODI World Cup 2023 at Hyderabad, India.
The Pakistani bowling lineup restricted the opponents to 205. Vikram Singh and Bas De Leede remained scorers from Netherlands as they made 52 and 67, respectively.
Haris Rauf and Hassan Ali picked two wickets each while Mohmmad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Iftikhar Ahmed and Shadab Khan took one wicket each.
Second innings clicks ????
Pakistan bowlers have been disciplined with @RealHa55an and @IftiMania picking up the two wickets to fall so far ☄️#PAKvNED | #DattKePakistani | #WeHaveWeWill pic.twitter.com/8SRp3HYBZt
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 6, 2023
Earlier, Netherlands won the toss and put Pakistan to bat first. The team green set a target of 287 runs for rivals in the opening match.
The team green struggled to put score on board in early overs as it lost three top order batsman – Fakhar Zaman (12), Imamul Haq (15) and Babar Azam (5).
At this point, a solid partnership between Mohammed Rizwan (68) and Saud Shakeel (68) gave stability to the Pakistan innings. The duo built a partnership of 120 runs, recovering their side for pressure.
After their removal, Mohammad Nawaz held the reins to keep the momentum as he made 39 runs. Shadab Khan also helped Pakistan to built a reasonable total as he made 32 before being removed by Leede.
Pakistan is set to play the first two of their nine league matches in Hyderabad.
Since their arrival in the city late last month, which marked the first instance of a Pakistan men’s cricket team landing in India in seven years, the squad has taken full advantage of training sessions and two warm-up matches to adapt to the city’s conditions.
Babar, speaking on the eve of Pakistan’s tournament opener, stated, “We have been in Hyderabad for a week, and our preparations have been excellent. We’ve had two practice matches in which we experimented with different combinations, giving everyone a chance to prove their capabilities in various situations. Overall, our practice sessions have been productive, and we will give our best.”
Pakistan Squad:
Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel/Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf
Netherlands Squad:
Vikramjit Singh, Max O’Dowd, Wesley Barresi, Bas de Leede, Colin Ackermann, Scott Edwards (capt &wk), Ryan Klein, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Shariz Ahmed and Paul van Meekeren
