CT 2017, Match 7, PAK v SA – Pakistan Player Ratings

It was the 7th match of the ICC Champions Trophy where Pakistan played against South Africa at Edgbaston, Birmingham. Both teams had contrasting starts to their campaigns as South Africa dominated Sri Lanka in the first match and Pakistan lost comprehensively to India. Here as well, South Africa came into the match as the favorites but to the surprise of many, the Asian side turned up with a clinical performance.

South Africa were invited to bat first after losing the toss. The openers provided a decent start but post their dismissal in quick succession, they were left stranded. A brilliant spell by Hasan Ali removed 3 quality batsmen and turned the game in his side’s favor. David Miller was still at the crease and did the repairing job along with the tail-enders. He scored an unbeaten 75 and took the score to a competitive 219/8.

In reply, Pakistan’s charge was led by the debutant Fakhar Zaman.  He was on the attack from the outset and provided a good start. The top order contributed but they lost 3 wickets. The rain threat was hovering over the match and they did well enough to get to 119/3 after 27 overs, well past the DLS par score when the rain started. There was no further play possible and Pakistan were declared the winners by 19 runs by DLS method.

Here’s how the Pakistani players performed in the match:

Azhar Ali – 4/10

The opener made just 9 off 22 balls during the chase but what he did well in his short stay at the crease was that he played the perfect foil for Fakhar. Azhar didn’t try to match his partner shot for stroke. But after Fakhar’s dismissal, he played an irresponsible shot and went back in the 8th over.

Fakhar Zaman – 6.5/10

The debutant replaced Ahmed Shehzad in the line-up and made an immediate impact. Fakhar went after the South African quicks from the outset that pushed them on the back foot. He lost his wicket for 31 off 23 balls but he had done the job of providing the flourishing start.

Babar Azam – 6/10

The 22-year-old walked in at the departure of Fakhar and assumed a certain responsibility. The pacers were on the attack and he played them sensibly. He scored an unbeaten 31 off 51 balls with 4 boundaries and stayed at the crease until the rain interrupted.

Mohammed Hafeez – 7/10

The right-hander was in at the crease in the 8th over when Pakistan had lost both openers in a quick succession. Hafeez played a steady hand and added 52 runs for the 3rd wicket alongside Babar. He scored 26 runs to go with the figures of 51/1 which he bagged in the 1st innings accounting for the wicket of Quinton de Kock.

Shoaib Malik – 6/10

Malik found himself in the middle in the 24th over when there was certain rain threat to hit the game soon. His quickfire 16 off 14 balls ensured Pakistan were ahead of the DLS par score. When the rain did strike, Pakistan were 19 runs clear of the target and won the match ultimately.

Imad Wasim – 8/10

After a dismal show against India, the left-arm spinner made a terrific comeback in this match. He ended with figures of 20/2 from 8 overs and bagged the two most important wickets of the South African innings – Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers.

Shadab Khan – 4.5/10

The leg-spinner didn’t have too much to do in the game as the other bowlers stood up. Shadab bowled only 5 overs in the innings in which he conceded 20 runs without picking up any wickets.

Mohammad Amir – 5/10

Although Amir’s figures read 50/0 in 10 overs, those don’t reflect the way he bowled in the game. Initially, he didn’t get the success but bowled a lovely spell at the death. His pin-point accurate yorkers didn’t give too many chances to the likes of Miller to get under the ball.

Junaid Khan – 7/10

Playing his first match of the Champions Trophy, Junaid replaced the injured Wahab Riaz in the XI. He did a far better job that what Riaz had done against India. He claimed figures of 53/2 in 9 overs and picked up the wickets of Chris Morris and Kagiso Rabada at the fag end of the innings.

Hasan Ali – 8.5/10

The pacer turned out to be the pick of the bowlers with figures of 24/3 in 8 overs. It was his spell that turned the game in Pakistan’s favor. He removed Faf du Plessis, JP Duminy and Wayne Parnell all in short span of time that kept South Africa at bay.

Sarfaraz Khan – N/A

The wicket-keeper batsman didn’t get a chance to bat and hence doesn’t qualify for a rating. But he certainly needs to lauded for ringing in the bowling changes at the right times that restricted South Africa to a paltry score.