South Africa rout Pakistan by 67 runs in ICC Champions Trophy 2013 – Cricket news South Africa on Monday ripped Pakistan apart in the Group B match of the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy after beating them by 67 runs at Edgbaston, Birmingham. Having lost the warm-up match to Pakistan and going into the game without number-one bowler Dale Steyn, the South Africans were certainly feeling the heat. Pakistan on the other hand, were dubbed as the favourites, however, the outcome of the match turned out to be completely the opposite. While the Pakistani bowlers started off well, they lost their hold later in the match, giving South Africa a chance to post a formidable score of 234 runs on the board. Hashim Amla, who was earlier dropped in the match, went on to hammer a match-winning knock of 81 runs. From Pakistan, skipper Misbah-ul-Haq was the only batsman who played a commendable knock as he scored an important 55 runs. His wicket was the killer blow as the Proteas easily managed to win. Earlier, after winning the toss South Africa chose to bat first and were kept under check by the disciplined Pakistan bowling. However, the two openers Amla and Colin Ingram succeeded into giving their side a stand of 53 runs, before Pakistan struck to nab the wicket of Ingram, who faltered after scoring 20 runs. The next partnership was slow, yet it still managed to take the score to 122, before Faf du Plessis became the second batsman to find his way back to the pavilion after he was removed by Mohammad Irfan for 28. Saeed Ajmal then worked his magic by dismissing Amla, who was caught while playing a reckless shot, leaving his side on 145. AB de Villiers looked strong until he was run out for 31, with his side on 186. Pakistan then never looked in the mood for a successful run chase and the wicket of Imran Farhat with only four on the board set the tone of their run chase. The Pakistanis kept losing wickets at regular intervals, which prevented them from launching against the South African bowlers. With 18 runs on the scoreboard, Pakistan lost their second wicket when Mohammad Hafeez was dismissed for seven. While in the top order, Nasir Jamshed showed some courage by hammering 42 runs. It was the Pakistani skipper who anchored the rest of the match. Unfortunately, he kept losing partners from the other end and subsequently failed to save his side from the second defeat in the tournament.
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