DUBAI: Pakistan on Monday defeated West Indies by seven wickets through an all-out team effort in their warm-up match for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021.
The Men in Green chased down 131-run target in 15.3 overs, courtesy of impressive knocks by skipper Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman. Babar scored 50 off 41 balls, while Fakhar remained unbeaten on 46 runs off 24 balls.
Earlier, batting first after winning the toss, West Indies posted 130/7 in their allotted 20 overs. Pakistani bowlers put up a strong showing against an aggressive West Indian side. The Windies never looked comfortable batting first, losing wickets at regular intervals.
Pakistan bowlers maintained a tight line and length in the first 10 overs, which restricted the batting side to 44/2. However, West Indies made a comeback in the second half of the innings, scoring 86 runs.
Middle-order batter Shimron Hetmyer was the top run-scorer with 28 runs off 24 balls. Skipper Kieron Pollard smacked pacer Haris Rauf for five consecutive fours in the last over to help West Indies post a fighting total.
For Pakistan, the spinners dominated the show with Mohammad Hafeez, Imad Wasim and Shadab Khan conceding only 3.25 runs per over in their eight overs. However, Imad was the only spinner to claim a wicket.
Shaheen Afridi bagged two wickets but was expensive after giving away 41 runs in his four overs. Hasan Ali was impressive after registering figures of 2/21 in his four overs. Haris also bagged two wickets while conceding 32 runs in his four overs.
