PORT OF SPAIN: Pakistan team displayed a good all round performance to defeat Westindies in the final match of the four-match series to win it by 3-1. Ahmed Shahzad made a welcome return to form in guiding Pakistan to a series-clinching seven-wicket victory over the hosts at the Queens Park Oval on Sunday.
Given a modest target of 125 , the opener played marvellous strokes all around the wicket to post 53 runs for himself in quick fashion. Babar Azam (38) made a good partnership of 70 runs with him to eliminate any prospect of the home side pulling off the upset. However both fell to the pace of Kesrick Williams with victory in sight and it was left to the experienced pair of Shoaib Malik and skipper Sarfraz Ahmed to formalize the result with an over to spare.
Excellent Seam bowling by Pakistan resulted in West Indies limited to low total of 124 for eight batting first and set the stage for the batsmen’s romp to victory to complete a 3-1 series triumph and claim a potentially significant psychological advantage ahead of the three-match one-day international series in Guyana starting on Friday.
Hassan Ali and Rumman Raees, replacing fellow left-arm seamer Sohail Tanvir from the previous match, displayed plausible accuracy and discipline, combining for three important wickets and also delivering three maiden overs.
Pakistan, for the first time ever, managed to bowl as many as three maidens in a T20 international and also the first occasion the West Indies, the reigning World T20 champions, conceded three maidens when batting in the game’s shortest format.
