Champions Trophy 2017: CT Player of the Tournament – Hasan Ali

So after 15 riveting matches, we have the winners. Pakistan defeated the arch-rivals India in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy and became the Champion of Champions. If you look back at the whole tournament and try to remember one player that stood out, it has to be Hasan Ali of Pakistan who is also CricTracker’s Player of the Tournament.

The right-arm pacer turned out to be the best bowler of the tournament. He picked up 13 wickets from 5 matches and ended up being the leading wicket-taker for which he won the Golden Ball award. Hasan had an average of 14.69 which was the best in the tournament. His economy of 4.29 and a strike rate of 20.5 were instrumental in making his side the Champions.

The pacer usually came into the attack being the first change bowler and bagged wickets at crucial stages. He bowled beautifully from the outset and induced enough movement off the surfaces even with the slightly oldish ball. Even at the death, he bowled wonderful yorkers and mixed those up with slower ones that made it extremely difficult for the batsmen to score runs off him.

Throughout the tournament, he bagged massive wickets. More often than not, his spells during the middle phases proved to be the turning points. He was the go-to bowler for his captain Sarfaraz Ahmed. Whenever Pakistan needed wickets, he was called in and he didn’t disappoint on most occasions.

Let’s take a look back at his performances in the tournament:

70/1 (10) vs India (Group Match)

It was perhaps the only match where Hasan didn’t deliver. He went for 70 runs in 10 overs. The Indian batsmen went after the bowlers and even Hasan wasn’t reprieved. His sole wicket was of Yuvraj Singh but at the end, it wasn’t a performance to remember for the bowler.

24/3 (8) vs South Africa (Group Match)

After a massive defeat against India, people wrote Pakistan off but Hasan Ali’s magnificent bowling proved to be the match-winning against the Proteas. He accounted for the wickets of Faf du Plessis, JP Duminy and Wayne Parnell and was adjudged the Man of the Match.

43/3 (10) vs Sri Lanka (Group Match)

In a virtual quarter-final, the fast bowler once again turned up with superb figures. He removed Kusal Mendis, Asela Gunaratne and Suranga Lakmal that helped to halt Sri Lanka to a paltry total of 236 which was ultimately chased down by Pakistan.

35/3 (10) vs England (Semi-Final)

On the big day where England were being seen as the favorites to win, Hasan Ali proved to be the difference once more. He dismissed Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan and Ben Stokes and as a result, England were bowled out for just 211. Pakistan cruised to victory and the pacer once again won the Man of the Match award.

19/3 (6.3) vs India (Final)

The big day arrived. The batsmen delivered with a huge score of 338 batting first. Mohammad Amir did the early damage and sent the top 3 Indian batsmen back in the hut. Hasan Ali backed up his good work and went on to scalp MS Dhoni, Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah.

At the end of it all, Hasan proved that there is no supplement for sheer pace. The surfaces in England weren’t so conducive for the seamers this time around. But he managed to extract enough out of those pitches and troubled the batsmen. Where no other team could produce reverse swing, the Pakistani bowler did it on a regular basis.

Pakistan have a knack of producing wonderful fast bowlers. Every now and then, they come up with someone who surprises the world with extraordinary skills. Hasan Ali is the latest addition to that elite list and if he is groomed properly by the team management, he is certainly the one for the future.

Leave apart the future, for now, it’s time for the whole of Pakistan and Hasan Ali to rejoice and celebrate the victory. They performed tremendously and inflicted a remarkable comeback after the humiliating defeat against India in the first match. How they turned things around and won the final against the same opposition, is a story that will be reverberated with pride in Pakistan for a number of years to come.