Pakistan maintain unbeaten record with comfortable Namibia victory

Babar Azam made 70 and Mohammad Rizwan recovered from a slow start to end unbeaten on 79 as one of the competition’s frontrunners earned their fourth consecutive win

Abu Dhabi: Pakistan 189-2, Namibia 144-5 - Pakistan win by 45 runs

Scorecard

Pakistan maintained their unbeaten start to the T20 World Cup with a comfortable victory over Namibia, who continued to impress even in defeat.

Babar Azam made 70 and Mohammad Rizwan recovered from a slow start to end unbeaten on 79 as one of the competition’s frontrunners earned their fourth consecutive win.

They were made to work for it though, with Namibia’s bowlers starting well – left-arm seamer Ruben Trumpelmann began proceedings with a maiden – before their failure to take an early wicket came back to bite them.

JJ Smit thought he had trapped Rizwan in front, but the wicketkeeper earned a narrow reprieve on review, with the ball pitching marginally outside leg-stump. Thereafter, Namibia’s fielding became increasingly sloppy and Pakistan’s in-form top order made hay.

Trumpelmann’s final two overs cost 34 runs, while Smit’s allocation went for 50. Azam finally fell when he mishit David Wiese to Jan Frylinck at deep midwicket, before Frylinck himself took the wicket of Fakhar Zaman for just five.

^{Pakistan maintained their unbeaten record}

His exit, however, brought Mohammad Hafeez to the crease, with the veteran smashing 32 off just 16 deliveries to take Pakistan to 189 for 2 in just 20 overs.

In response, Namibia refused to fold. Hassan Ali bowled Michael van Lingen early, but Stephan Baard and Craig Williams added 47 for the second wicket before an unfortunate runout left Baard agonisingly short of his ground. Gerhard Erasmus, captain of the associate nation, added impetus with a four and a six in quick succession until he was caught by Shadab Khan to give Imad Wasim a wicket.

Williams fell shortly afterwards to Shadab, with Smit the only other man dismissed as Namibia finished 45 runs short, with Wiese not out on 43, including one enormous six off Shaheen Shah Afridi who endured a rare expensive, wicketless evening.

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