CAPE TOWN: Kamran Ghulam’s explosive half-century and Shaheen Shah Afridi’s brilliant four-wicket haul guided Pakistan to an 81-run victory over South Africa in Thursday’s second ODI of their three-match series at Newlands.
With the win, Pakistan secured an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, leaving South Africa with little chance of a comeback ahead of the final ODI, scheduled for Sunday in Johannesburg.
Set a challenging target of 330 runs, South Africa’s chase faltered as they were bowled out for 248. Heinrich Klaasen was the lone standout, scoring a valiant 97 off 74 balls, which included eight fours and four sixes. Tony de Zorzi also contributed with a 34 at the top of the order.
Shaheen was the star performer for Pakistan, finishing with figures of 4/47, while Naseem Shah supported him well, claiming 3/37 from 8.3 overs. Abrar Ahmed chipped in with two wickets.
Earlier, Pakistan struggled at the start of their innings, losing opener Abdullah Shafique for a duck in the first over with just five runs on the board. However, Babar Azam, joined by last match’s centurion Saim Ayub (25), steadied the ship with a crucial 48-run partnership before Ayub’s dismissal in the 10th over.
Babar then found solid support in captain Mohammad Rizwan, and the pair added 115 runs for the third wicket, with both players scoring half-centuries. Babar was eventually dismissed for 73 off 95 balls, which included seven fours, when Andile Phehlukwayo caught him at midwicket in the 33rd over.
Rizwan continued to anchor the innings, contributing 80 runs from 82 balls, including 10 boundaries and three sixes, before falling to Kwena Maphaka in the 36th over after a brief 24-run partnership with Salman Ali Agha (33).
Kamran Ghulam then took control of the innings, smashing a quick-fire 63 from just 32 balls. He hit four fours and five sixes, playing a pivotal role in pushing Pakistan’s total. Ghulam shared key partnerships with Salman, Muhammad Irfan Khan (15), and Shaheen Afridi (16) before being dismissed on the first ball of the final over.
