Babar Azam scored 60 while Muhammad Rizwan made 50 runs as both the players added 110 against 145 balls during the first inning of the match.
COLOMBO: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-August 26th, 2023) Pakistan set the target of 269 runs for Afghanistan in the third and final One Day International (ODI) match in Colombo on Saturday.
Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan scored fifties and led their side to a strong position after winning the toss and decided to bat first against Afghanistan.
Babar Azam scored 60 while Muhammad Rizwan made 50 runs as both the players added 110 against 145 balls during the first inning of the match.
Mohammad Nawaz (30 off 25) and Agha Salman (38 not out in 31) collaborated to add momentum with a partnership of 61 runs off 47 balls for the seventh wicket. Pakistan lost eight wickets in 50 overs.
Afghanistan's Gulbadin Naib and Fareed Ahmad secured two wickets each during the match.
With a commanding 2-0 lead in the series, Pakistan's dominance remains unchallenged.
Should they emerge victorious in today's match, Pakistan stands to claim the top position in the ICC ODI Rankings.
In a lineup shift, Pakistan introduced four changes: Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, and Mohammad Wasim Jr replacing Usama Mir, Iftikhar Ahmed, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf.
Afghanistan also made alterations, as Gulbadin Naib and Fareed Ahmad stepped in for Abdul Rahman and Ikram Alikhil.
Commenting on the conditions, Pakistan's captain Babar Azam noted, "The pitch looks very dry with a little bit of grass. The first ten overs will be crucial. We'll try to put runs on the board and then put pressure on them. We'll try to win this game. Everyone's excited. We have four changes. We are pretty satisfied. We are trying different combinations in this match. We'll try to give our best today also. Today's pitch is different from the ones we had in the LPL. I think it's a good pitch. I think 280-290 is a good total."
In response, Afghanistan's captain Hashmatullah Shahidi expressed, "Last game was very good. Today is a new and fresh day, we'll try to come back and win. We don’t get enough chances. We are playing some very good cricket in the last two years. We'll try to play good cricket. Our aim will be to try and win. We have made two changes. Gulbadin and Fareed are in."
Pakistan's victory in the initial ODI was emphatic, with a notable margin of 142 runs. However, the second match was a tightly contested affair, with Pakistan securing the win by a mere one-wicket margin, largely thanks to Naseem Shah's contributions.
Playing XIs
Pakistan: 1 Imam-ul-Haq, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Babar Azam (capt), 4 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 5 Saud Shakeel, 6 Agha Salman, 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Mohammad Nawaz, 9 Faheem Ashraf, 10 Shaheen Afridi, 11 Mohammad Wasim
Afghanistan: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Riaz Hassan, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 5 Gulbadin Naib, 6 Mohammad Nabi, 7 Rashid Khan, 8 Shahidullah Kamal, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Fazalhaq Farooqi, 11 Fareed Ahmad
