Disciplined Pakistan win by seven runs in second T20I against West Indies

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A disciplined Pakistan side picked up a seven-run victory over West Indies in the second Twenty20 International (T20I) at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on Saturday.

Pakistan now have a one-nil lead in the four-match T20I series against West Indies after the first T20I was washed out due to rain.

Chasing a tricky target of 158 runs, West Indies were off to a horrible start as veteran all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez cleaned up opener Andre Fletcher on the second ball of the innings for a duck.

The bowlers kept their line straight which made run-scoring very tough.

Pacer Hasan Ali varied his pace perfectly and reaped the rewards for his bowling as he cleaned up veteran batsman Chris Gayle after he had scored 16 runs off 20 balls.

Pacer Mohammad Wasim was the next bowler to rattle the stumps as he removed batsman Shimron Hetmyer after he had scored 17 runs off 18 balls.

Opener Evin Lewis was solid at the crease but could not hit the big shots which were required by his side.

The opener had to return to the hut, retired hurt, after scoring 35 runs off 33 balls.

Skipper Kieron Pollard was removed by pacer Shaheen Shah in the final over of the chase, caught by fielder Mohammad Wasim, after scoring 13 runs off 14 balls.

Wicketkeeper-batsman brought life to the match with his hitting towards the end and remained unbeaten after scoring 62 runs off 33 balls as West Indies ended on 150 runs for the loss of four wickets, just seven runs shy of the target.

Mohammad Hafeez was the standout bowler for Pakistan, picking up one wicket while giving away just six runs in four overs.

Earlier, after losing the toss and being asked to bat first, Pakistan were off to a breezy start as openers Sharjeel Khan and Mohammad Rizwan stitched together a 46-run partnership.

All-rounder Jason Holder struck the first blow as he removed Sharjeel (20 off 16), caught by fielder Akeal Hosein, as the batsman tried and failed to attack the bowler.

Batsman Babar Azam then joined Rizwan for a 67-run partnership off 58 balls to provide a solid foundation for his side.

Rizwan, during his knock, raced to 749 T20I runs at an average of 107 runs which is the most by any player in the calendar year surpassing Ireland’s Paul Stirling who previously held the record after scoring 748 runs in 20 T20Is in 2019.

The wicketkeeper-batsman however was run-out before getting to his fifty, falling after scoring 46 runs off 36 balls.

Rain interrupted play at a critical time as Babar Azam got to his fifty and the Men in Green were looking to up the ante.

The delay, despite its short nature, proved to be a blessing for West Indies as Pakistan underwent a horrible collapse.

Babar was the first to depart, caught behind by wicketkeeper Nicolas Pooran off the bowling of Jason Holder, after scoring 51 runs off 40 balls as a review showed a spike as the ball passed the batsman’s bat.

Veteran all-rounder’s horrible form continued as he fell to all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, caught by fielder Hayden Walsh, after scoring just six runs off six balls.

The bowlers continued bowling away from batsman Fakhar Zaman and the move paid dividends soon as the explosive batsman was caught by fielder Hayden Walsh off the bowling of Dwayne Bravo after scoring 15 runs off 11 balls.

Jason Holder then removed tailender Hasan Ali (golden duck) and batsman Sohaib Maqsood (five off four), caught by fielders Dwayne Bravo and Walsh respectively, as Pakistan fell deeper into trouble.

All-rounder Shadab Khan (five off four) was run out on the last ball as Pakistan managed 157 runs for the loss of eight wickets in their allotted overs.

Jason Holder was the most successful bowler for his side, picking up four wickets at the expense of 26 runs.