India vs Pakistan 2005/06 (Part Four)

Mar 08, 2022

India vs Pakistan 2005/06 (Part Four) Image

With the Test business between the two sides concluded, attention switched to the ODIs that got underway in Peshawar.

Pakistan elected to field after wining the toss, but despite taking the early wicket of Virender Sehwag, India were on top early as Sachin Tendulkar and Irfan Pathan put on 94 for the second wicket until Pathan was out for 65. He had faced as many balls, and had hit a six and 12 fours.

Tendulkar and M.S. Dhoni them added 126, until Dhoni, with a six and 11 fours to his name, was out for 68. Yuvraj Singh came out to join Tendulkar, and the pair put on 60 for the fourth wicket. Yuvraj was the next to go, for 39. 

A big score seemed on the cards at that stage, but Tendulkar’s dismissal for exactly 100 – he had faced 113 balls and struck a six and 10 fours – seemed to check the Indian momentum. They would have been disappointed to lose their last five wickets for the addition of just 23 runs and made the cardinal sin of not batting out their 50 overs.

They were all out for 328. Naved-ul-Hasan was the most successful of the Pakistan bowlers with 4-62.

Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal gave Pakistan a solid start with a 50-run stand. After Akmal was out for 25, Butt and Shoaib Malik came together, in a partnership that would eventually be worth 151 for the second wicket.

Butt departed for 101, having hit 15 boundaries. Malik then added 31 with Shahid Afridi before departing for 90, with three sixes and nine fours against his name.

Indian fought back with regular wickets, but Pakistan kept up with the required run rate, and, by the end of their 47 overs had reached 311/7.

There was no further play due to bad light, leaving Pakistan ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis par score of 305.

Butt was named Man of the Match.