On a cool Rawalpindi night where the contest swung repeatedly between control and chaos, it was Mohammad Nawaz’s composure that eventually pulled Pakistan through. The left-arm all-rounder first broke Zimbabwe’s opening surge with the ball and later returned under pressure to finish the chase with the calm of a man who had seen the moment coming long before everyone else.
Pakistan began their Tri-nation T20I campaign with a five-wicket win, but the margin hides how uneasy the pursuit felt for long stretches. A target of 148 was not intimidating on paper; on the field, however, Zimbabwe ensured Pakistan had to work for every inch of it.
Having opted to bowl, Pakistan were immediately pushed on the defensive by Zimbabwe’s opening pair. Brian Bennett carved out a fluent 49, and Tadiwanashe Marumani added 30, their 72-run partnership in eight overs giving the visitors a platform brighter than anything they managed for the rest of the innings.
Pakistan needed a moment to break the spell, and Nawaz provided it. His two wickets in the space of an over halted Zimbabwe’s momentum and opened the door to a collapse that saw the visitors lose eight wickets for just 75 runs across the final 12 overs.
Skipper Sikandar Raza tried to wash some of the damage away with an unbeaten 34 off 24, peppering the last over with a six and a four, but by then Pakistan had restored control. Zimbabwe closed on 147 for eight, a total that was competitive but far from commanding.
The chase began with promise and then wobbled violently. Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan added 27 for the first wicket before both departed in quick time. By the ninth over Pakistan were 54 for four, their innings shrinking at the same pace Zimbabwe’s had earlier.
At that point Fakhar Zaman and Usman Khan came together with 94 still needed from 63 balls — a situation that demanded not flair but method. The pair spent the 11th over probing for singles, nothing extravagant, no disruption of shape. Usman nudged the scoreboard along with boundaries in the next two overs. Fakhar waited slightly longer before finding two sixes in consecutive overs to pull the match back into Pakistan’s hands.
When Fakhar fell for 44 in the 16th over, Zimbabwe sensed a final opening. What followed instead was Nawaz’s quiet intervention.
Nawaz’s arrival transformed the chase not with a sprint but with assured strides. Brad Evans was lofted over long-on in the 17th over, a stroke that signaled Pakistan’s shift from caution to calculation. Still, the tension held: 17 needed from 12 balls, conditions ripe for a twist.
Evans’ next over produced that twist — an overstep, a dropped chance — but Usman and Nawaz turned each moment to their advantage, taking 12 off the over and leaving just five needed from the final six balls.
Tinotenda Maposa, tasked with an impossible equation, lasted only two deliveries. Nawaz drove the first ball past cover and repeated the dose on the next, sealing victory with four balls left. His unbeaten 21 off 12 capped a day in which he had already reshaped the match with figures of 2 for 22.
The win gives Pakistan early control of the tri-series ahead of Zimbabwe’s next assignment, where they face Sri Lanka on 20 November at the same venue. Pakistan return on 22 November for their meeting with Sri Lanka.
Leave a Reply