Muhammad Rizwan and Babar Azam lead Pakistan to a 3-0 victory
Another clinical feat by Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam led Pakistan to its most successful chase in T20I cricket when they beat West Indies by seven wickets in the third T20I in Karachi.
West Indies hit a well-rolled surface first, riding on Nicholas Pooran's 37-ball 64 and breezy 40s from Brandon King and Shamarh Brooks to score a challenging 207 for 3. But a 158-run-stand between Rizwan and Babar, in only 15.1 overs, almost certainly a 3-0 result.
Babar contributed 79 of 53 balls, while Rizwan was the aggressor, hitting 87 of just 45 with the help of ten fours and three sixes. During his knock, Rizwan also completed 2000 runs in T20 cricket that year. When the winning runs were scored, Pakistan had seven balls left.
Game was jeopardized earlier in the day after Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein and Justin Greaves tested positive for Covid-19, but both teams decided to continue the game.
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However, that meant that West Indies had to put together a severely decimated team, as they were already performing without Sheldon Cottrell, Roston Chase and Kyle Mayers - all three had tested positive at the start of the tour - and Devon Thomas, who has a finger injury. They were still performing at their best on the show, but it wasn't enough to prevent glossing over.
King's birthday party
On his 27th birthday, King decided to ignore caution. He opened his account with consecutive fours against Mohammad Nawaz in the first half. Both times he gave himself space and hit the ball offside. That remained his modus operandi for most of his innings, even if he didn't keep the ball in the center all the time.
Nawaz came in for more punishment on his next over. Brooks drilled him past the middle first, and then King hit the last three balls of the overs for six, four, and four. At the other end, King took three fours over Mohammad Hasnain's two overs, and as a result, West Indies drove to fifty in just 4.2 overs.
At the penultimate ball of the power play King backed away again and shot Mohammad Wasim Jr. for a 98-meter six, the ball landed on the roof of the deep Midwicket grandstand. Wasim, however, made a comeback on the next ball, uprooting King's stump when the batter failed his attempt to cut a fuller throw too late.
Brooks cut loose
West Indies finished the power play at 66 for 1. Brooks, who was hitting 21 of 16 balls at the time, decided it was his turn to let go. He hopped down the track against Nawaz, but landed in the direction of Long-On, where Iftikhar Ahmed and Hasnain, who stormed in from Long-Off, screwed up their appeal and despite both field players next to each other, neither got the ball.
Shadab Khan finally paid the price for the drop when Brooks hit him the next over with three sixes in four balls. But like King, he missed half a century. Shahnawaz Dahani hurried him with a short ball and let him catch deep in midwicket.
Pooran drives WI further
The Pakistani bowlers had defeated the West Indies in the first two T20Is, but there was no respite for them Thursday night. With two left-handers in the middle, Babar Azam tried to outplay an offspin from Iftikhar, but Pooran gave him two sixes.
He was equally argumentative against Hasnain, whom he took for 19 of six balls, including two sixes and one four. Pooran's attack meant the West Indies didn't lose momentum, despite Darren Bravo struggling with 17 balls out of 16 at once. Pooran put in his half century with 31 balls, but after his release, the West Indies only managed to get 15 of the remaining 14 balls.
The Babar Rizwan Show
Babar and Rizwan were on the hunt for a huge sum and did not have the luxury of showing their eyes. But the two are in such good shape that, without taking any chances, they've struck out with about ten or more throughout their partnership. There were drives through cover and down the wicket, swings across the ground and over the infield, and hard-led loners and groups of two. Rizwan was the first to reach his half century with just 26 balls; It took Babar 40 balls to get his up.
While Rizwan heaved a pair over the deep square leg, aside from Gudakesh Motie, the debutant, Babar didn't hit his first six until the 13th. That too, when Oshane Thomas set the pace. He cleared his front leg and cream Thomas over the wide long-off line before hitting the next two balls for fours.
The only chance the West Indies offered was when Babar blocked Motie in the seventh over, but Pooran hit the outside edge. Babar was then at 28, Pakistan at 62. Babar eventually fell to Odean Smith, who hit a knuckle ball long-off when Pakistan needed 50 of five overs.
The finishing touch
If the West Indies were contemplating a comeback, Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman would not allow it. When Rizwan failed a complete throw from Dominic Drakes and Pooran caught the catch near the short fine leg, the equation was down to 24 balls out of 16. Asif Ali (21 * out of 7) then hit a number of limits to even out the score. Romario Shepherd took only one run and let Asif fly the ball towards long-on, where Rovman Powell dropped the catch. That one ball embodied the series from the point of view of the West Indies: this young bunch has the potential, but they still have to work on their skills.