Pakistan’s Sharjeel Khan celebrates his half-century against England in their Twenty20 match at Old Trafford on Wednesday. Pakistan won by nine wickets. (Photo: AP)
Pakistan’s Sharjeel Khan celebrates his half-century against England in their Twenty20 match at Old Trafford on Wednesday. Pakistan won by nine wickets. (Photo: AP)
Pakistan hammered England by nine wickets in their tour-ending Twenty20 international at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Set just 136 to win, Pakistan openers Sharjeel Khan (59) and Khalid Latif (59 not out) shared a blistering first-wicket stand of 107 that all but sealed victory.
Pakistan finished on 139 for one with 31 balls to spare as they gave Sarfraz Ahmed a win in his first match as Twenty20 captain.
Earlier England, fielding the same side that lost to the West Indies in the last over of April’s World Twenty20 final, managed just 135 for seven after winning the toss.
Wahab Riaz took 3/18 and spinner Imad Wasim 2/17 as England hit just one boundary in the last 10 overs of their innings.
Openers Alex Hales (37) and Jason Roy (21) were the only England batsmen to pass 20 as Pakistan, who shared the Test series 2-2 and lost the one-dayers 4-1, had a night to remember under the Old Trafford floodlights.
Imad Wasim and Wahab Riaz led an impressive Pakistan bowling performance as the tourists held England to 135 for seven in their lone Twenty20 international at Old Trafford.
Left-arm spinner Wasim removed both England openers Jason Roy and Alex Hales on his way to a fine return of 2/17 in his maximum four overs without conceding either a four or a six.
Pakistan had an early scare when Wasim, who conceded just two runs in the first over of the game, was struck a painful blow in the next over when a hard-hit shot from Hales reared up off a practice pitch and hit him on the head.
But he returned to stop England’s innings in its tracks. Roy, a good straight hitter, was lbw when trying to reverse-sweep Wasim.
England then lost two wickets in two balls to be 67/3.
Scorecard England: J. Roy lbw b Imad Wasim 21, A. Hales b Imad Wasim 37, J. Root c Shoaib Malik b Hasan Ali 6, J. Buttler c Khalid Latif b Wahab Riaz 16, E. Morgan c Sarfraz Ahmed b Wahab Riaz 14, B. Stokes c Babar Azam b Hasan Ali 4, M. Ali (not out) 13, D. Willey c Shoaib Malik b Wahab Riaz 12, L. Plunkett (not out) 0. Extras: (lb8, w4) 12. Total: (for 7 wkts, in 20 overs) 135. FoW: 1-56, 2-67, 3-67, 4-93, 5-104, 6-110, 7-132. Bowling: Imad Wasim 4-0-17-2, Sohail Tanvir 4-0-35-0, Mohammad Amir 4-0-33-0, Hasan Ali 4-0-24-2, Wahab Riaz 4-0-18-3.
Pakistan: Sharjeel Khan c Ali b Rashid 59, Khalid Latif (not out) 59, Babar Azam (not out) 15. Extras: (w6) 6. Total: (for 1 wkt, in 14.5 overs) 139. FoW: 1-107. Bowling: Willey 2-0-16-0, Jordan 1-0 -16-0, Plunkett 1.5-0-24-0, Stokes 2-0-20-0, Root 1-0-10-0, Rashid 4-0-29-1, Ali 3-0-24-0
