11.34 AM Tuesday, 19 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 05:07 06:20 12:29 15:54 18:33 19:47
19 March 2024

Pakistan vs Zimbabwe 1st ODI: Malik slams century in Pakistan win

Published
By Cricket Correspondent and Agencies
 

Shoaib Malik hit his first century in six years to help Pakistan outbat Zimbabwe in the first day-night international by 41 runs in Lahore on Tuesday, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Malik, playing his first one-dayer after two years, notched up a 76-ball 112 with 12 fours and two sixes to steer Pakistan to 375/3 - their highest against Zimbabwe - before restricting the tourists to 334/5 in 50 overs at Gaddafi Stadium.

Zimbabwe tried their valiant best with skipper Elton Chigumbura hitting a rapid 95-ball 117 but the mounting asking rate proved too much in the end.

Chigumbura hit 10 boundaries and four sixes in his maiden one-day hundred as Zimbabwe also improved on their previous highest total against Pakistan, beating 295-9 in Bulawayo in 2002.

Chigumbura added 124 for the third wicket with Hamilton Masakadza (73) and another 74 for the fourth with Sean Williams (36).

Chigumbura was bowled in the 45th over by paceman Wahab Riaz who was the best Pakistan bowler with 3/47.

Chigumbura's previous best was 90 he made against South Africa at Bulawayo last year.

Shoaib Malik capped his one-day return with a brilliant century to help Pakistan post their highest total against Zimbabwe of 375-3 in the first day-night international in Lahore on Tuesday.

Malik, playing his first one-day after two years, notched a 76-ball 112 with 12 fours and two sixes after Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat on a flat Gaddafi Stadium pitch.

Malik built on a confident 170-run opening stand between Mohammad Hafeez (86) and skipper Azhar Ali (79) as Pakistan improved on their previous best total against Zimbabwe of 349 at Jamaica in 2007.

Malik's hundred - his first in 31 innings and since September 2009 - came off 70 balls as Pakistan added 112 in the last ten overs.

Malik, 33, was dismissed off the last delivery, caught in the covers off Tinashe Panyangara.

Malik had been part of a 201-run  stand with Haris Sohail (89 not out), a new record for the third wicket against Zimbabwe beating the 145 runs which Javed Miandad and Amir Sohail put on at Hobart in 1992.

Sohail's knock came off 66 balls with six boundaries and two sixes.

Zimbabwe is the first major team to tour Pakistan since terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in March 2009 led to the suspension all international cricket in the country.

Massive security continued to be deployed at the stadium and for the teams, with a sell-out 27,000 crowd expected to watch the match.

Ali and Hafeez gave Pakistan early momentum as they batted solidly.

Zimbabwe spurned a good chance of separating the two when Chris Mpofu dropped a catch at the long-on boundary off Prosper Utseya.

Utseya then dismissed both the openers off successive deliveries with Ali caught off a miscued sweep while Hafeez missed a straighter delivery and was bowled.

Ali hit nine fours and two sixes while Hafeez knocked eight boundaries and four sixes.

Malik started off shakily before adjusting steadily, reaching his fifty - also first in six years - off just 43 balls.

The next two matches will be played on Friday and Sunday - also in Lahore.

Hafeez also misses out on a possible century attempting an ambitious padded sweep off Utseya only to be castled. Pak 174-2, 27.1 overs.

Mohammad Hafeez b Utseya 86 (83b 8x4 4x6)

Zimbabwe finally break the record breaking opening stand as Azhar holes out to backward square leg. Pak 170-1, 26 overs.

Azhar Ali c Panyangara b Utseya 79 (76b 9x4 2x6)

Hafeez is turning it on slamming two consecutive sixes off Raza. Pak 160-0, 25 overs.

Hafeez gives Williams the charge and hoists him straight down the ground for a six. Pak 83-0, 15 overs.

Azhar whips Mpofu through midwicket for a couple of boundaries. Pak 70-0, 14 overs.

Hafeez steers Williams through the gap on the off to bring up the fifty of the innings in the 11th over. Pak 54-0, 11 overs.

Azhar cracks two consecutive boundaries off Mpofu. Pak 47-0, 10 overs.

Hafeez opens his shoulders lofting Panyangara for a boundary and then sweeping over square leg for the first six of the match. Pak 36-0, 9 overs.

Azhar drives Vitori gloriously through the covers for another boundary. Pak 26-0, 8 overs.

Azhar Ali walks across and swats Panyangara to midwicket for another boundary. Pak 21-0, 7 overs.

The first boundary of the match comes in the sixth over as Azhar slices Vitori through point. Pak 17-0, 6 overs.

Pakistan skipper Azahr Ali has won the toss and opted to bat first.

Playing XI

Pakistan: Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfraz Ahmed, Azhar Ali, Anwar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Hammad Azam, Shoaib Malik, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Sami, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah

Zimbabwe: H Masakadza, Sikandar Raza, E Chigumbura, CR Ervine, CB Mpofu, R Mutumbami†, T Panyangara, V Sibanda, P Utseya, BV Vitori, SC Williams

Preview

After two nail-biting finishes in the Twenty20 series marking the return of international cricket to Pakistan, the hosts and Zimbabwe move to the three-match one-day series on Tuesday aiming to build for the future.

Pakistan won the Twenty20 series 2-0 Sunday in front of a packed audience of 27,000 at Lahore's Gaddafi stadium, but will be far from happy over the manner of both wins which saw them nearly snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

The matches were played under massive security with 4,000 policemen guarding the stadium and another 2,000 deployed on the route from the team hotel to the venue.

Security has been ratcheted up to avoid a a repeat of the 2009 attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus, which killed eight people and cast Pakistan into sporting exile for six years.

Pakistan's one-day captain Azhar Ali, who did not feature in the Twenty20s, said the huge excitement surrounding the tour had helped the team forget its disastrous 3-0 ODI drubbing in Bangladesh last month.

"The excitement on the return of international cricket was so big that it helped us put our Bangladesh defeat in the back of our minds," said Azhar who took over after Misbah-ul-Haq retired following the 2015 World Cup in April.

"It was disappointing to lose in Bangladesh but we will look to build a team for the future and improve on what we did wrong in Bangladesh."

The 30-year-old middle order batsman said replacing players like Misbah and Shahid Afridi - who also retired from one-day after the World Cup - would require time.

"When you lose players of that calibre it takes time to get their replacement," he said, adding his team would not take Zimbabwe lightly.

Pakistan have persisted with spinning allrounder Shoaib Malik and paceman Mohammad Sami, both of whom featured in the T20s, in the one-day squad after a break of two and three years respectively.

Opener Ahmed Shehzad also returns after being left out of the Bangladesh tour over what was termed an attitude problem.

For Zimbabwe, the series represents another shot at ruining Pakistan's homecoming party after they threatened to close out both Twenty20s but eventually lost in crucial passages of play at the death.

Zimbabwe will miss the services of ace batsman Brendan Taylor who quit international cricket to take a three-year contract with England county Nottinghamshire.

He was Zimbabwe's best batsman in the 2015 World Cup with 433 runs at an excellent average of 72.16.

Captain Elton Chigumbura admitted Taylor and paceman Tendai Chatara - not on the tour with a broken leg - will be missed but said his team will try to overcome the loss.

"That's the good thing about life, players come and go and get opportunity and players came here to grab those opportunities," he said.

"We just want to try and carry that momentum from the World Cup and obviously improve one or two percent on the thing that we didn't do well," added Chigumbura, whose team lost five of the six matches in the mega event.

Middle-order batsman Craig Ervine is likely to play after missing both the Twenty20 matches due to flu.

Pakistan have won 43 of the 48 one-day matches between the two sides with Zimbabwe winning three while one match each ended in a tie and no result.

The matches will be held on on May 26, 29 and 31.

Teams (from):


Pakistan:
Azhar Ali (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Asad Shafiq, Haris Sohail, Shoaib Malik, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Anwar Ali, Hammad Azam, Imad Wasim, Yasir Shah, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Sami, Junaid Khan

Zimbabwe:
Elton Chigumbura (capt), Sikandar Raza, Chamu Chibhabha, Charles Coventry, Graeme Cremer, Craig Ervine, Roy Kaia, Hamilton Masakadza, Christopher Mpofu, Tawanda Mupariwa, Richmond Mutumbami, Tinashe Panyangara, Vusi Sibanda, Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Sean Williams

Match officials for May 26:

Umpires: Aleem Dar (PAK) and Russell Tiffin (ZIM)
TV umpire: Ahmed Shahab
Match referee: Azhar Khan (PAK)