Pakistan defeat England in nail-biter to reach the final of the Under 19 World Cup, where they will face either Australia or South Africa

By PakPassion Staff (24th Feb, 2014)

Toss: England Under-19s won the toss and chose to bat.


Teams:

Pakistan Under-19s: 1. Sami Aslam(c), 2. Imam-ul-Haq, 3. Hasan Raza, 4. Saud Shakeel, 5. Kamran Ghulam, 6. Zafar Gohar, 7. Saifullah Khan(wk), 8. Zia-ul-Haq, 9. Amad Butt, 10. Karamat Ali, 11. Ameer Hamza

England Under-19s: 1. Jonathan Tattersall, 2. Harry Finch, 3. Ryan Higgins, 4. Ben Duckett, 5. Ed Barnard, 6. Will Rhodes(c), 7. Joe Clarke(wk), 8. Rob Sayer, 9. Rob Jones, 10. Jack Winslade, 11. Matt Fisher

England captain Will Rhodes had no hesitation in opting to bat in the first day-night scheduled match of the tournament. He may have been wondering if it was the right decision just three overs in as the openers were dismissed with just one run on the board. Zia-ul-Haq was the first to strike, Jonathan Tattersall hitting a short of a length delivery straight to Imam-ul-Haq at backward point. The left-arm seamer had beaten the batsman in his previous four deliveries and Tattershall was out trying to release the pressure that had built. Harry Finch was out just two balls later – to Amad Butt – after he drove to a well-placed short cover and both openers had been dismissed without having troubled the scorers.

Quarter-final hero Ben Duckett joined Ryan Higgins at the crease and the two saw off the new ball with some careful strokeplay. In the 11th over Duckett looked to mount a counter-attack, hitting consecutive boundaries off Zia-ul-Haq, but a brilliant piece of fielding by Hasan Raza, who dived full length at short midwicket to take an outstanding catch, removed him for 22 to leave England 38/3.

Captain Sami Aslam brought on his spinners - Zafar Gohar, Karamat Ali and Kamran Ghulam – as Pakistan exerted more pressure on the England team and Ed Barnard dragged on in the 22nd over, Karamat Ali taking his first wicket.

Captain Rhodes and Higgins batted another 16 overs, adding another 50 runs before a double strike by leg-spinner Karamat Ali left England 6 down with 12 overs remaining and in danger of not batting the full quota. Karamat had Higgins stumped after he had scored a well-constructed 52 to anchor his side and next ball he bowled a perfectly-pitched googly which spun back in and castled Clarke (0).

Despite the loss of Jones (17) in the 45th over after he was beaten by a full ball by Amad Butt, Rhodes looked unfazed, slamming Zafar Gohar for six over midwicket in the 48th over. Rhodes ended unbeaten with 76 off 79 balls but he will also have his partner Rob Sayer to thank for England posting a competitive 204, after Sayer hit a six in the final over in which Zia-ul-Haq conceded 17 runs.

The England’s fighting spirit which was also evident in the match against India came to the fore as the young guns refused to buckle under the pressure applied by the Pakistani bowlers, and with their new-ball bowlers performing well, England would be hoping to remove the in-form Pakistani openers early and expose the brittle middle order.

Fall Of Wickets
1-1 Tattersall, 2.5 overs,
2-1 Finch, 3.1 overs,
3-38 Duckett, 10.6 overs,
4-69 Barnard, 21.4 overs,
5-119 Higgins, 37.3 overs,
6-119 Clarke, 37.4 overs,
7-154 Jones, 44.5 overs.

Pakistan got off to a bright start before spinner Rob Sayer trapped Sami Aslam lbw for 18, the left-hander missing a sweep shot. The loss was a big one for Pakistan given his opening partner Imam-ul-Haq was constrained by a leg injury which was preventing his ability to take quick singles. The two openers between them have scored over half of Pakistan’s runs in the tournament and it would require the other batsmen, who have had little time in the middle recently, to carry the chase.

The pressure was clearly telling on the batsmen in the face of some tight bowling by the England team who were pumped up for the occasion. They had further cause for celebration as Hasan Raza (8) played a loose lofted drive which looped to mid-on off the bowling of Rhodes. Things got worse as Imam-ul-Haq (28) was out in the next over, being adjudged lbw although replays suggested the ball was sliding down leg. Jones struck again just three balls over as Kamran Ghulam (0) slapped a full toss straight to midwicket and Pakistan had gone from 57/1 to 57/4 in the space of seven balls.

Despite the pressure of a semi-final chase, Ameer Hamza (35) and Saud Shakeel (45) came together and carried the attack to England but when Hamza fell in the 32nd over next batsman in Saifullah Khan (0) gloved a short delivery by Fisher to the wicket-keeper and Saud Shakell followed just a few overs later, to leave Pakistan 142/7 and still needing 63 runs.

Captain Sami Aslam in his pre-tournament interview with PakPassion had indicated that although Zafar Gohar was a good spinner, he had also contributed vital runs for Pakistan in the past and the young all-rounder repaid the faith of the captain, as Gohar (37 off 53) and Amad Butt (26 off 37) brought Pakistan home with no further wickets lost. Pakistan needed 23 off the last three overs and the balance shifted in the 48th over, when Amad Butt lofted a shot towards long-off who not only dropped the catch, but parried the ball over the boundary for six. A couple of fours – one for Gohar and the final one which secured victory off a full toss by Amad, cued Pakistani celebrations of a magnificent victory.

Fall Of Wickets
1-41 Sami Aslam, 7.5 overs,
2-57 Hasan Raza, 13.5 overs,
3-57 Imam-ul-Haq, 14.2 overs,
4-57 Kamran Ghulam, 14.5 overs,
5-131 Ameer Hamza, 31.6 overs,
6-133 Saifullah Khan, 32.5 overs,
7-142 Saud Shakeel, 36.5 overs

A closely-fought contest which could have gone either way, England can leave the tournament with their heads held high after knocking out the much-fancied India and pushing Pakistan very close in conditions in which they were expected to struggle.

Pakistan extended their unbeaten streak against England to 10 matches, and more importantly showed character to come back from precarious positions in the match. A lot had been made of the lower order not contributing runs with the strength lying in the top three, but when all fell cheaply today, despite some wobbles, they carried Pakistan to the final.

Next Game:

Saturday 1 March, 08:00 GMT: Pakistan Under-19s vs. TBC, ICC World Cup Final, Dubai

Discuss!