T20 World Cup: Pakistan beat Namibia, qualify for semi-finals
Pakistan handed Namibia a one-sided defeat in the Super 12 encounter of the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup on Tuesday. They successfully defended 189 to win their fourth successive game in the ongoing tournament. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan starred with the bat, having shared a century stand. Pakistan have become the first side to qualify for the semi-finals in the ongoing edition.
Babar (70) and Rizwan (79*) added 113 runs for the opening wicket after Pakistan elected bat. Mohammad Hafeez further tormented the Namibia bowling attack. His unbeaten 32 off 16 balls powered Pakistan to 189/2. Namibia were impressive in the first 10 overs. However, the Pakistani pacers restricted their flow of runs. Pakistan eventually ended Namibia's bid to chase 190.
Pakistan have registered the second-highest total of the 2021 T20 World Cup. The likes of Bangladesh (181/7 vs PNG) and Sri Lanka (172/5 vs Bangladesh) follow Pakistan on the tally. Afghanistan registered the highest total (190/4) against Scotland.
Mohammad Rizwan continued his sublime run. The Pakistan opener remained unbeaten on 79 (50). He smashed 8 fours and 4 sixes in his scintillating knock. Rizwan now has the second-most T20I runs in a calendar year (1,661 runs in 2021). He is likely to break the all-time record of Chris Gayle, who scored 1,665 runs in 2015.
While Rizwan impressed with his defiant knock, skipper Babar Azam was the aggressor. The latter racked up 70 off 49 balls with the help of seven fours. Babar slammed his 23rd half-century in T20I cricket. He has become the first captain to score three fifties in a T20 World Cup edition. Babar scored 68* and 51 against India and Afghanistan respectively.
