Pakistan stayed in contention for a berth in the quarter-finals of the World Cup after trouncing minnows the United Arab Emirates by 129 runs in a Pool B match, in Napier, on Wednesday.
In notching their second consecutive victory, Pakistan, propelled by a fine 93 from opener Ahmed Shehzad, put up 339 for 6, which proved too much for the UAE, who could muster up just 210 for 8, though they did well to bat the full 50 overs, with Shamimam Anwar scoring 62, his third One-day half-century.
- Should BCCI censure Virat Kohli?
- Kiwis dominate World Cup Best XI; no Indians yet!
Khurram Khan (43) and Amjad Javed (40) were the other notable contributors for the minnows.
Pacers Sohail Khan (2/54), Wahab Riaz (2/54) and spin all-rounder Shahid Afridi (2/35) took two wickets each.
The victory took Pakistan to fourth on the points table.
Pakistan's huge score came against a not-so-impressive attack but their batsmen got some much-needed runs under the belt.
Invited to bat, Pakistan lost opener Nasir Jamshed (4) early, but Shehzad and Haris Sohail, who scored 70 runs, shared a huge 170-run stand for the second wicket to lay the foundation for a big score.
Mohammed Naveed broke the stand by having Sohail caught by Shaiman Anwar. Shehzad then missed the milestone of a World Cup hundred as he was run-out as Pakistan lost two quick wickets.
Shehzad's 93-run knock came off 105 balls with nine boundaries, including a six.
The following batsmen also treated the UAE attack with disdain. Sohaib Maqsood scored a fiery 45 and captain Misbah-ul-Haq further consolidated the innings with 65 off 49 balls.
Misbah was dismissed at the fag end of the innings, attempting a big shot off left-arm paceman Manjula Guruge but Afridi did the finishing job in style, scoring 21 unbeaten off just seven balls, with two sixes and a four.
Guruge was the most successful UAE bowler, scalping four wickets.
UAE's chase started badly as they lost three wickets for 25 runs in 10 overs. Khurram and Shaiman then raised a 83-run stand for the fourth wicket to prevent the innings from falling apart.
Sohaib Maqsood broke the partnership by getting rid of Khurram and after that the batsmen that followed negotiated the remaining 20 overs without further collapse as Pakistan cruised home.
