Who won Pakistan vs South Africa 2nd T20I today? — Match result & turning points
Pakistan drew level in the three-match T20I series after winning the second game by nine wickets at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Friday, October 31.
Salman Agha won the toss and opted to bowl first
before Salman Mirza bowled a stunning spell with the new ball. The left-arm pacer, replacing Shaheen Afridi in the playing XI, bagged the wickets of Reeza Hendricks, Tony de Zorzi, and Matthew Breetzke in his first three overs inside the powerplay. Naseem Shah also struck in the second over, removing Quinton de Kock with a slower delivery.
At 23/4 inside five overs, South Africa needed a partnership. Dewald Brevis and Donovan Ferreira joined forces, and the former hit three sixes to give the Proteas hopes of a revival. However, Faheem Ashraf dismissed him for a 16-ball 25. Wickets kept tumbling at the back-end of the South African innings as the tourists were dismissed for 110 in 19.2 overs. Ashraf bagged a four-for, but Mirza's spell of 3/14 changed the game in favour of Pakistan early in the innings.
In reply, Pakistan got off to a fine start thanks to Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub. They added 54 runs inside seven overs. After the former's dismissal for a 23-ball 28, Babar Azam walked out to the middle. The former Pakistan skipper didn't have to do much as Ayub did all the scoring, blowing away the South African bowlers with his aggressive batting display.
Ayub smashed an unbeaten 71 off 38 balls to take Pakistan home in just 13.1 overs. Babar remained not out on 11 after facing 18 deliveries. With this win, Pakistan stayed afloat in the series, making the third T20I a decisive affair.
Top batting performances of the match — Saim Ayub
Saim Ayub smashed an unbeaten 71 off 38 balls, belting six fours and five sixes. The southpaw finished his knock with a strike rate of 186.84. He hit a six off South African captain Ferreira to finish proceedings. After a disappointing performance with the bat in the Asia Cup, this knock will give the youngster a lot of confidence.
Best bowling spells — Salman Mirza
While Faheem Ashraf picked up four wickets, it was Salman Mirza's three-wicket haul inside the powerplay that helped South Africa get the upper hand early in the match. He bowled with a lot of heart and also used slower balls to keep the batters guessing.
Records Broken and Major Milestones Achieved
This was the fourth-lowest first-innings total for Pakistan in T20Is. The Pakistani pacers picked up nine wickets in a T20I for the third time. This is the joint-most number of wickets the Pakistani fast bowlers have taken in a particular match. Meanwhile, Babar Azam went past Rohit Sharma's tally of 4231 runs in this format. Now, Babar is the leading run-getter in T20I cricket.
Who was the Player of the Match?
Salman Mirza won the Player of the Match award for his remarkable burst with the new ball. The 31-year-old bagged three big wickets inside the first five overs, and it forced South Africa to chase the game from there onwards.
What is the next match?
Pakistan will clash with South Africa at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Saturday, November 1. The series is intriguingly poised at 1-1.
