A determined century from middle-order batsman Babar Azam put Pakistan back in control of their 2019 ICC World Cup destiny with a six-wicket win over the previously unbeaten New Zealand at Edgbaston, Birmingham, Wednesday.
Azam hit 101 off 127 balls with 11 fours, his first World Cup ton and 10th overall, and also shared in a century fourth-wicket partnership on a tricky pitch with Haris Sohail as Pakistan, chasing the Kiwis’ 237 for six, got there with five balls to spare.
Sohail, who hit 68 from 76 balls, was run out by Martin Guptill with Pakistan needing just two runs for victory but he had already done his job by then.
Skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed (5) had the honour of hitting the winning runs to the boundary to spark wild celebrations from the mostly Pakistan fans at the sold-out venue
The victory pushed Pakistan to joint fifth with Bangladesh on seven points each on the 10-team table. New Zealand remained in second with 11 points, one less than leaders Australia with India (9 pts) and England (8 pts) still third and fourth respectively. More importantly, however, both Pakistan and Bangladesh can now pressure England for the final spot in the semi-final phase from here if they get positive results in their final two matches.
Earlier, Neesham and de Grandhomme shared in a record 132-run sixth wicket partnership to steer the Kiwis to what they felt was a match-winning total.
This after pacer Shaheen Afridi had produced his best bowling of the tournament to leave New Zealand tottering at 83 for five with the fall of in-form skipper Kane Williams for 41 to spinner Shadab Khan.
Afridi removed the core of the Kiwis’ batting, including opener Colin Munro (12), the experienced Ross Taylor (3) and Tom Latham (1), early on as the Pakistanis took advantage of a difficult pitch to put their opponents in a spot of bother.
However, de Grandhomme joined Neesham and they weathered the storm to produce a patient innings which progressed to a productive one towards the end. Neesham hit five fours and three sixes in his 112-ball innings while de Grandhomme hit a 71-ball 64 before he was run out by a throw from the deep from Mohammad Amir going for a second run.
Afridi was the best bowler for Pakistan with three wickets for 28 runs, including three maiden overs in his spell.
SUMMARISED SCORES
NEW ZEALAND 237-6 (50) (Jimmy Neesham 97*, Colin de Grandhomme 64, Shaheen Afridi 3/28) v PAKISTAN 241-4 (Babar Azam101*, Haris Sohail 69*)
Result: PAKISTAN WON BY SIX WICKETS