Sunday, Sep 22, 2002
Sunday, Sep 22, 2002 |
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Cricket
By S. Dinakar
Holland's Henk-Jan Mol is clean bowled by Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis (left) while Shahid Afridi wades into spinner Adeel Raja and hits him for a six in their ICC Chmapions Trophy encounter in Colombo on Saturday. _ Photos: N. Balaji
It was a bright, sunny afternoon and there certainly were no dark clouds around, but then, it rained sixes from Shahid Afridi's swashbuckling blade! Along with sounds of thunder and lightning, as the Pakistani's bludgeoning willow met the ball! The big-hitter struck six booming sixes, four of them in one over from a shell-shocked off-spinner Adeel Raja, and his rollicking 18-ball unbeaten 55, was the second quickest half-century ever in the ODIs. Agonisingly close to Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya's 17-ball effort, ironically against Pakistan, in '96. Already out of the competition, Pakistan crushed minnows Holland by nine wickets, with as many as 33.4 overs still remaining in the innings, in an inconsequential Pool 4 match of the ICC Champions Trophy. Chasing Holland's 136 in 50 overs, Pakistan raced to the target in just 16.2, experienced opener Saeed Anwar (28 not out) being with Afridi at the end. Afridi arrived at the fall of dashing opener Imran Nazir, who himself had cut, pulled and driven the limited and hapless Dutch attack on way to a 40-ball 59, before failing to keep a pull off seamer Feiko Kloppenburg down and being taken at square-leg. Nazir, who came in for Yousuf Youhana in the eleven, and Anwar had raised 85 off just 11.2 overs. Afridi was in a mean mood. He hadn't been too pleased when Tim de Leede had clouted him over mid-wicket earlier in the day, the ball hitting the top of the roof, before rolling back into the ground. The Pakistani looked at De Leede from the corner of his eye...the Dutchmen would have to pay a heavy price later on. Stepping down the track and striking the ball as clean as a whistle, Afridi's first six off Raja landed in the hill beyond the mid-wicket fence, and the three more that followed in that eventful over were all thundering blows, two over long off, and the last one clearing long-on rather straight. The opposition might have been lowly, still this was awesome hitting. Then, after dismissing Jacob Esmeijer's friendly spin for a straight six, Afridi finished the match, hitting Raja well over the long on ropes, jumping from 49 to 55. His blitzkrieg along with his three wickets bowling leg-spin, fetched him the Man of the Match award. However, the two dot balls in Raja's second over cost him the record. In the morning, Pakistan's menacing new ball pair of Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar was always going to prove a handful for the Holland openers. It was Shoaib who provided the first breakthrough, Daan Van Bunge edging him low to Misbah-ul-Haq at the first slip. The other opener, Fieko Kloppenburg, was ambling across to the striker's end for a single, when he saw, to his horror, Afridi swooping in on the ball at short cover and firing in a direct hit. Bas Zuiderent, who promised briefly with on-driven boundary when Shoaib erred in length, poked at a delivery leaving him from Waqar and Younis Khan at second slip did not disappoint his captain. And Waqar removed Henk Mol, off the very next delivery, with a brilliant piece of bowling. Bowling over the wicket to the left-hander, the wily paceman foxed Mol with a delivery that straightened to hit the off-stump, even as the left-hander shouldered arms expecting the ball to slant across him. Holland had been reduced to 23 for four and Waqar was on a hat-trick. The small crowd willed itself to roar as Waqar thundered in for his third strike in three balls, however, Dutch vice-captain Luuk Van Troost, did well to survive a full length delivery. Waqar's durability despite the injuries, and the whims and fancies of the Pakistan selectors, has been admirable. He is surely among the golden greats of fast bowling, still able to work up pace, still able to gain movement both ways, still able to strike in a telling fashion. His methods are ideal too — he gets the new ball to leave the right-hander, and reverse swings the old ball. A wonderful role model for the youngsters. The experienced Tim de Leede and Van Troost strung together a fighting partnership. With Waqar and Shoaib finishing their first spells, some of the pressure was off and Van Troost did cover drive Mohammed Sami — he replaced an injured Wasim Akram — to the fence, and flat-batted Abdur Razzaq straight down the ground. When Afridi was introduced into the attack, De Leede greeted him that six. Leede, who has turned out for Northants, Sussex and Surrey second elevens, and Troost added 55 for the fifth wicket in 89 deliveries when the former was consumed by an Afridi googly, trapped leg-before. Troost who received a `life' at 15 when Rashid Latif missed a stumping off Afridi, succumbed to the same bowler soon, nicking to the 'keeper, when the leggie spun one away from the left-hander. Afridi scalped his third victim when he won a vociferous leg-before shout against Jacob Esmeijer. Skipper Roland Lefebvre's defiant unbeaten 32 ensured that Holland would not be dismissed until the last ball of the 50th over, however, it was an innings where Mr. Extras top-scored with 33!
Pakistan bowling: Waqar 7-3-14-2 (w-2), Akhtar 8-3-14-1 (w-1); Sami 10-1-18-1 (w-6); Afridi 10-3-18-3 (w-2); Razzaq 7-0-25-1 (w-1); Malik 8-1-26-1.
Fall of wicket: 1-85 (Nazir).
Holland bowling: Schiferli 4-0-37-0; Lefebvre 4-0-14-0; De Leede 2-0-19-0; Kloppenburg 2-0-23-1; Raja 2.2-0-31-0; Esmeijer 2-0-18-0.
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