Zimbabwe 133 out of 8 (Bennett 43, Afridi 3-24) won Pakistan 132 for 7 (Salman 32, Muzarabani 2-25) for two wickets
Orderly Zimbabwe leaves Pakistan in a mess
Raza realized Pakistan were struggling against spin and drove himself, Ryan Burl and Brian Bennett at various stages throughout the middle. Pakistan were batting with a rather long tail, which required a rebuild through the middle. Salman Agha forged handy partnerships with Tayyab Tahir and Qasim Akram to keep the visitors going, before useful cameos from Arafat Minhas and Abbas Afridi got Pakistan past three figures. It was only a messy 13-run final over from Muzarabani that took Pakistan past 130 against a bowling attack that offered them very little throughout the innings. It was almost enough.
Bennett and Marumani sweep Pakistan
Pakistan were defending a low total, and Zimbabwe’s early goals essentially broke it. The intent was clear when Bennett drove Mohammad Hasnain to the square leg boundary on the first ball of the innings. Marumani, who has outclassed Jahandad for much of this series, edged him off-side for a couple of boundaries in the second over, and Zimbabwe flew from there.
But when Hasnain lined up for his second over, a beating awaited him at the hands of Bennett. His line and length were all over the place and the batsman was only too happy to take advantage with a couple of boundaries on either side of the wicket, plundering 19 off the errant. Salman was quick to go on the attack and Marumani insolently swept him in reverse off the first ball. It had taken them 19 balls to reach 40, and the required pace was now less than five.
Muqeem’s magic almost derails Zimbabwe
There is no better indicator of the start Muqeem has had in T20I cricket that Pakistan turned to him for a miracle when they needed wickets and to control the run rate. No batsman could really identify his error, and his figures of 4-1-19-1 did not do justice to all his magic. There were multiple hits that barely missed the outside edge, and a couple of top edges that could have easily slid right in. It culminated in a seductive final against Musekiwa, who desperately tried to dismiss him, willing to act like a maiden as the order rate soared after each ball.
On any other day, Muqeem would have ended the game before his spell ended, and based on the evidence of this series, there will be many more days like that.
