Pakistan clinched a nail-biting two-wicket win over South Africa in the first ODI of the three-match series at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad.
Chasing a target of 264, the Green Shirts secured victory in the final over with eight wickets down. Salman Ali Agha was the top scorer with a poised 62, while Mohammad Rizwan added a vital 55.
Opener Fakhar Zaman set the tone early with a brisk 45, and Saim Ayub chipped in with 39. However, Mohammad Nawaz and skipper Babar Azam failed to make an impact, scoring 9 and 7 runs respectively.
From the South African side, Lungi Ngidi, Donavon Ferreira, and Corbin Bosch claimed two wickets each.
Batting first, South Africa set a target of 264 runs for Pakistan thanks to the partnership between openers Quinton de Kock and Wiaan du Pretorius.
Pretorius scored 57 runs before being dismissed by Saim Ayub. De Kock then built a 43-run stand with Tony de Zorzi during which he completed his half-century. He was bowled by Naseem Shah after scoring 63, while de Zorzi was dismissed for 18.
Proteas captain Matthew Breetzke played an innings of 42 runs and Corbin Bosch played a fast-paced knock of 41 runs to help boost the team’s total.
Earlier, the Green Shirts won the tossand opted to bowl first against the Proteas earlier.
This marks the first international match in the Punjab city in 17 years, adding an extra layer of excitement to the historic occasion.
The central city in Punjab province last staged an international match in 2008 when Pakistan and Bangladesh played an ODI.
Pakistan endured a six-year exile from international cricket in the aftermath of a militant attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore in March 2009.
Source: Dunya News