Pakistan beat South Africa by three wickets in first ODI
Cricket
Saim with 109 , Salman 82 scores helped Pakistan win series’ first ODI
PAARL (Dunya News) – Pakistan beat South Africa by three wickets after chasing the target of 240 runs for the loss of seven wickets, with three balls remaining.
Saim Ayub hit 109 runs while Salman Ali Agha scored 82 runs, lifting Pakistan to get 240-run target.
They guided Pakistan to win the first ODI of the three-match series played at Boland Park.
Ayub displayed a good show with a 109-run knock with the help of ten boundaries and three sixes.
Salman Ali Agha resisted and piled up 82 runs off 90 balls with four boundaries and two sixes, guiding Pakistan to win by three wickets with three balls remaining.
Irfan Khan Niazi and Mohammad Rizwan could hit only one run each while Abdullah Shafique and Shaheen Afridi left the crease without scoring any runs.
The only player who entered double-digit after Ayub and Agha was Babar Azam, who scored 23 runs off 38 deliveries with three boundaries. Kamran Ghulam could hit 4 runs before he was run out.
Earlier, South Africa set a target of 240 runs for Pakistan in the first ODI of the three-match series today (Tuesday) in Paarl.
Tony de Zorzi and Ryan Rickelton managed to build a strong opening stand of 70 runs before Salman Ali Agha delivered his magical bowling spell.
Agha spun his web around the Proteas batters and took quick four wickets in his first three overs. He removed Zorzi for 33 and Rickelton for 36 in major breakthrough.
Later he picked wickets of Rassie van der Dussen and Tristan Stubbs in quick session, catching the hosts off guard.
At this point, Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klassen came to rescue their side and they stitched a much-needed partnership of 73 runs.
Pakistan’s part-timer Saim Ayub broke their partnership by sending Markram to pavilion and later Marco Jansen was dismissed by Abrar for 10 runs.
But Klassen continued to put score on the board in his rescue bid but he fell prey to Shaheen Afridi’s delivery at 86.
Andile Phehlukwayo from tail order was removed by Abrar for one run as Protease made 239 runs in 50 overs.
Earlier, South Africa won the toss and decided to bat first against Pakistan.
Pakistan's captain, Mohammad Rizwan, expressed confidence, stating that the team will aim to maintain their strong rhythm in ODIs.
Meanwhile, South Africa's ODI squad has been strengthened by the return of key players who missed the T20 series.
It is worth noting that Pakistan recently defeated world champions Australia and Zimbabwe in ODI series before arriving in South Africa.
South Africa had won the T20I series 2-0 after the third T20I was washed out on 14 December. The ODI series holds a lot of significance for both the teams as they look to fine tune their preparations for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy in February and March 2025 in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s squad has been bolstered with the return of pacer Naseem Shah, opening batter Abdullah Shafique and top-order batter Kamran Ghulam while wrist-spinner Sufyan Moqim and Usman Khan have received their maiden ODI call-ups.
This will be Mohammad Rizwan’s third ODI series as skipper of the side as he has started his stint with back to back ODI series wins over Australia and Zimbabwe.
In their last bilateral face-off in the 50-over format, Pakistan won the three-match series 2-1 in South Africa in April 2021.
Pakistan skipper Mohammad Rizwan said, “This is a vital ODI series in terms of our preparations for the ICC Champions Trophy and with Allah’s help we will look to emulate our performances from the ODI series against Australia".
“We couldn’t get the ideal results in the T20I series but I am really happy with some of the performances put in by our players in these conditions especially Saim’s batting was brilliant in both games. Our batting, pace and spin stocks are decent enough to challenge South Africa and win the series with the help of almighty," he added.
“I see a lot of potential in our ODI squad with players young and experienced both willing to put the best step forward, which makes us an exciting prospect as a one-day side not just going into this series but also in the home tri-nation series and the blockbuster white-ball mega event at home.”
Pakistan squad:
Mohammad Rizwan (captain & wk), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan (wk)
South Africa squad:
Temba Bavuma (captain), Aiden Markram, Andile Phehlukwayo, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Maphaka, Marco Jansen, Ottneil Baartman, Rassie van der Dussen, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tony de Zorzi, and Tristan Stubbs
