Sufiyan Muqeem spins Zimbabwe to its lowest T20I total, Pakistan to unassailable 2-0 series lead
Dec 03, 2024
Bulawayo [Zimbabwe], December 3 : Pakistan took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series after Zimbabwe crashed on its lowest T20I total in the second match of the series on Tuesday in Bulawayo.
Sufiyan Muqeem's spell made the second T20I a day to forget for Zimbabwe. His five-wicket haul, which came with just three runs, had put Pakistan in a firm position for victory even before the chase began.
With unbelievable figures of 5/3 in 2.4 overs Muqeem was crowned as the Player of the Match.
In a paltry chase of 58, Pakistan wrapped up the second T20I within the blink of an eye. The hopes of a miracle ended in the first over of the second innings after Sikandar Raza spilt 11 runs.
Saim Ayub arched back to guide the ball past the boundary line, which summed up Pakistan's dominance over the hosts. The young southpaw continued to flex his batting technique by charging at Blessing Muzarabani.
The ball raced to four after Ayub found a thick outside edge while trying to slash it. His colleague Omair Yousuf muscled the ball across the boundary line for his first six of the match.
Trevor Gwandu was next in the firing line, with Ayub making the most of a juicy full toss by drilling it past the bowler for a four. On the final delivery of the over, he flicked the ball past the boundary rope to pick his first six of the match.
With a couple of strike rotations and three boundaries from Ayub got the job done for Pakistan inside the powerplay and sealed a 10-wicket victory.
Earlier in the innings, Zimbabwe's openers got off to a brisk start, with Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani putting up a 37-run stand.
After speedsters Haris Rauf and Abbas Afridi got rid of the duo, the hosts found themselves preparing for the second innings after collectively adding just 20 runs on the board.
In the space of those 20 runs, Muqeem worked his magic by varying his pace, bringing googly and top spin into play during his short spell. He raced past Zimbabwe's batting order with ball tweakers Salman Agha and Abrar Ahmed playing second fiddle to Muqeem's prowess.
Zimbabwe fell on 57, their lowest total in T20I cricket, which majorly came down to nine batters returning to the dressing room without hitting the double digits.
