SYDNEY: Rising to the occasion, Mohammad Rizwan and skipper Babar Azam smashed fantastic fifties and led Pakistan to the final of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022 with a convincing seven-wicket win over last year's finalists New Zealand in the first semifinal at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), here on Wednesday.
After winning the toss and opting to bat first, a fighting fifty from Daryl Mitchell along with a vital innings from Kane Williamson helped New Zealand recover from early jolts and post 152-4 in 20 overs. Apart from Mitchell (53 not out off 35) and Kane Williamson (46 off 42), the likes of Devon Conway (21 off 20) and James Neesham (16 not out off 12) were the other main contributors with the bat for New Zealand.
Chasing an under-par target, openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam put their hand up when it mattered the most and gave Pakistan a blistering start, scoring 55/0 in the first six overs — their best powerplay of the tournament with the bat.
Skipper Babar was dropped by Devon Conway and he made New Zealand pay. He along with Mohammad Rizwan negotiated the overs of Trent Boult and Tim Southee beautifully in the early parts of the innings.
Rizwan with his aggressive approach led the way and was dealing in boundaries while Babar took his own time before taking on New Zealand bowlers. Even after the powerplay, boundaries were flowing at will for Pakistan and they reached 87/0 after 10 overs.
Thereafter, Babar (53 off 42) upped the tempo and went on to outscore his opening partner to the fifty. But, he couldn't carry his innings longer after that as Boult returned to the attack and broke the century opening stand of 105 runs with the wicket of Babar.
Later, Rizwan (57 off 43) also reached to a 36-ball fifty but like Babar, he also couldn't last till the end, getting out to Boult in the 17 over. Youngster Mohammad Haris played a vital knock of 30 off 26 to take Pakistan closer to the victory before getting out in the second last over.
Eventually, Shan Masood (3 not out) hit the winning runs as Pakistan chased down the total in 19.1 overs with seven wickets in hand. Trent Boult (2/33) and Mitchell Santner (1/26) were the wicket-takers for New Zealand.
Earlier, Shaheen Afridi was the most successful bowler for Pakistan with his 2/24, and Mohammad Nawaz (1/12) was the other wicket-taker.
Brief scores: New Zealand 152/4 in 20 overs (Daryl Mitchell 53 not out, Kane Williamson 46; Shaheen Afridi 2/24) lost to Pakistan -153/3 in 19.1 Overs (Mohammad Rizwan 57, Babar Azam 53; Trent Boult 2/33) by 7 wickets. IANS
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