Colombo: A power-filled fifty by opener Sahibzada Farhan lifted Pakistan to a healthy 190 for nine against the United States of America in a Group A T20 World Cup match here Tuesday.
Babar (46, 32b) and Farhan (73, 41b) added 81 runs for the third wicket as Pakistan recovered well from a slightly worrying 56 for two after the Power Play segment.
After being asked to bat first, Pakistan were initially cruising at 56 for no loss in five overs.
But pacer Shadley van Schalkwyk (4/25) got rid of both Saim Ayub and skipper Salman Agha in the space of five deliveries in the sixth over to put brakes on Pakistan.
Farhan was as usual all muscles, smoking bowlers for sixes at will. His maximums of spinner Milind Kumar were a testimony of his brute power.
Farhan’s bull run also allowed Babar to settle in and then play his shots in the first match under lights at the Sinhalese Sports Club.
In fact, the right-hander, whose strike-rate of 110 is the lowest for any batter in the history of the T20 World Cup, took 20 balls to smash his first six.
But once he got some kind of rhythm, Babar looked all class, using cross-batted shots to find some boundaries.
He took a toll on left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh, carving him for a six and two fours in the 12th over as Pakistan run-rate gradually touched 10 an over.
In between, Farhan completed his ninth T20 fifty, his first in the ICC showpiece, off 27 balls.
But Babar’s inherent lack of power in his batting snapped his stay, as Milind took an excellent diving catch at deep off spinner Mohammad Mohsin, who placed the ball away from the hitting arc of the former Pakistan captain.
Farhan too did not last long as he perished to Harmeet as Sanjay Krishnamurthi took a well-judged running catch near long-off fence.
But all-rounder Shadab Khan (30, 12b) played some heavy shots in the death overs as Pakistan inched towards a good total despite losing one too many wickets at that stage.
Brief Scores:
Pakistan 190 for 9 in 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 73, Babar Azam 46; Shadley van Schalkwyk 4/25)
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