Pakistan defeat England, take inspiration from Aisam-ul-Haq
The Pakistani cricket team following an absolutely brilliant performance at the Oval on Friday has taken their inspiration from Aisam-ul-Qureshi, the tennis star from Pakistan who made it to the mixed and men’s doubles finals of the US Open in New York.
What could be termed a spectacular come back for the Pakistani side, they managed to defeat the in-form Englishmen in battle gear by a margin of 23 runs.
Pakistan posted a less than impressive total of 241, which seemed like an easy chase for the English side who started off very strongly. England were 201-5 and it was likely that the team would sail through the match with much ease. However, Umar Gul’s thunderous
bowling spell destroyed all English hopes for a win in the third ODI to clinch the series. Pakistan went into this match following 5 successive defeats ever since the spot-fixing controversy erupted and without the unassailable bowling duo of Amir and Asif,
it seemed highly unlikely that Pakistan would be able to make much of an impact. Umar Gul had also failed to find his form, with him being extremely expensive with the ball in the first few matches.
At a time, when Pakistan cricket fans had lost hope, that they would see any wins from the side that has contributed much to the world of cricket, and commentators making taunts at the Pakistan side, suggesting that maybe they have forgotten how to win,
Pakistan came back from an almost unlikely situation to redeem themselves. The Pakistani batsmen choosing to bat first after winning the toss were three wickets down with the veteran batsman Mohammad Yousuf back to the pavilion along with Kamran Akmal and
Mohammad Hafeez. It seemed likely that Pakistan would find itself bowled out for another score below hundred had it not been for the stunning knock from Fawad Alam scoring 64, who was well assisted by Asad Shafiq who scored 40.
One man, who was expected to score a blaster was http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Razzaq-c84421 hit a good knock of 31 in 24 balls and Pakistan posted a respectable total of
241 even though it looked like the team was a good 50 runs short of a challenging target.
England started off brilliantly however lost wickets in quick succession and soon found themselves struggling at 103 for 5. Eoin Morgan and Luke Wright put up a brilliant partnership and the English side seemed poised to win the match but Pakistan kept the
pressure built and soon, Umar Gul made a break through by forcing Morgan to hit a shot straight at a fielder.
In a gap of 17 runs, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 took 5 quick wickets to defeat England and Afridi and his team were ecstatic with the result. Afridi’s words of taking inspiration from the famous tennis star from Pakistan apparently gave the spirits in the dressing room a
much needed stir and this victory comes as a breath of fresh air for Pakistani cricket fans who are exasperated following the spot-fixing scandal that took the media by storm.
“His performances are an inspiration for all of us and he has brought so much joy to the people. I think our players must also take inspiration from him that nothing is impossible in sports,” Afridi said. “Qureshi may have lost in the finals of the men’s
doubles and mixed doubles but he fought hard and gave it his best shot and that is why everyone is proud of him.”
Afridi has also shown interest in meeting tennis star Aisam ul Haq and hopes to raise funds for the flood victims pairing with the star back in his home country.
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